Of Justice and Duty
by WiseDragonQueen5
Summary: Why would a young woman mercenary want to be involved in the Kira case? When duty is all you have left in life, what will you do to hold on to the things you believe in?
1. Prologue

Prologue

She crashed once more to the muddy ground, bringing still more tears to her tired eyes. Her gaze remained fixed on the faint light coming through the trees ahead; the only source of light in the dark, rain soaked forest.

At last her tiny legs and aching feet could go no further, and the little girl dropped to the soaked leaf litter of the forest floor. A whimper of pain and fear escaped from her throat as the darkness seemed to close in on her. Every tree branch in the dark became a monster or a scary animal out to eat her as she curled up in a ball. A shiver ran down her spine, followed closely by another and another, until she could not even move from the cold, wet ground where she had fallen. Her gaze stayed fixed on the light, as everything around her began to disappear further into darkness.

Suddenly, strong warm arms lifted her up, rousing her slightly from her stupor.

"An' what's a wee lassie like you doin' out in this mess?" a deep voice grumbled from somewhere above her. It was the last thing she remembered for some time – the warmth of those arms, and the deep comforting voice of the man who had lifted her from the forest floor.

The next time the small girl came to; she was sitting in a warm room on a cushion next to a fire. A tall, broad shouldered man with dark auburn hair and a well-groomed beard and mustache was shaking her shoulder, looking down at her with concern in his brown eyes. Something within the little girl told her she could trust him as soon as she met his eyes.

"Well, lassie, yer soaked and muddied through an' through," the man began, "We'll be needin' to get a mite like ye clean and dry to keep ye from gettin' sick, won' we? An' maybe sommat warm in yer belly too." The girl's eyes met his again, and she nodded, her eyes wide and trusting. She knew no harm would come to her from this kind man. She lifted her arms to him, waiting for him to lift her up.

The man sighed and lifted her up, taking her to the bathroom where he'd filled the tub with warm water. _Fine thing, at my age, to try an' start learnin' to care for a little, _he thought to himself. But he couldn't begrudge the tiny child a thing. She was too young to be a runaway – she had to be no more than three. Besides, no child with any sense would be running away into the woods around here. He had no idea why she had been running through the woods as if demons chased her, in the cold rain, with nothing covering her feet and only a tattered robe of some sort to provide any kind of warmth for her tiny body. However she'd come to be out there in the woods, she was here now. _Come now, Red, you watched out for yer younger siblings when you were younger. You can do the same now fer this mite._

Gently, his huge hands help the child to get out of her ragged, mud stained clothing. He set her in the warm water of the tub and the girl smiled at the warmth. She splashed about a little bit as he began to soap up a soft cloth. He scrubbed her back and her limbs, smiling as the young thing giggled when the cloth tickled her. He soaped her hair and poured a cup of water carefully over the suds to wash them from her hair. He very carefully washed the dirt and grime from her small face, making sure not to get soap in the child's startlingly emerald green eyes as he did so. At last he finished getting the dirt off of her delicate skin. The child lifted her arms once more to be lifted from the dirty water that was growing cold. Something caught Red's eyes as she did so. He moved her hair that was dark with water off of her chest and stared. There was a Celtic knot design on her chest – the three sided Triquetra with a small stylized bird inside it. He froze. He was an old mercenary and bodyguard, and he had seen enough that there wasn't much that could shake him. But he had held on to some old, odd superstitions throughout the years, things gleaned from his travels and from his homeland.

The child started to pout, not understanding why the kind man was leaving her in the cold, dirty water.

His eyes locked with her green, green orbs as he gently turned her head to catch the overhead light better. He gasped as he looked into those emerald eyes, for what he saw frightened him, awakening old fears of the fae, of shape-changers and witches and strange powers. The bird within the knot was a symbol of old power. It was a wren. He'd heard tales of lines of old that still had some of the druidic blood within them, but he'd thought such families had died out in modern times – being hunted down as witches and sorcerers, losing the power to disuse, or simply having all those with the powers die out with no one to train any new children that might show them.

But then the child began to cry. His kind eyes lost their fear as the once more focused on the hungry, lonely child. _Just superstitions, _he thought.

He lifted the waiting child and wrapped her in a soft and fluffy towel to dry her off.

He dressed the girl in one of his too-large shirts and sat her down at his kitchen table, ladling out some of the oatmeal he'd made and sprinkling it with cinnamon and sugar, adding butter and milk to it to cool it and make it more palatable for a picky young thing. He helped her eat, her tiny hands shaking too much from exhaustion to feed herself. After she'd finished he lifted her and went to the living room to place her in the nest of cushions and blankets he'd put together for her use.

But her tiny arms went around his neck then, and she yawned and laid her head on his shoulder trustingly. He stopped walking and checked. The little girl had already fallen asleep in his arms. Any fear left within his heart melted in the face of this trust.

He sat down on his couch, cradling the girl child in his arms, and wrapped them both with a blanket.

His eyes also began to drift shut in the warmth of the room and the warmth of this child's trust that was placed so willingly on his shoulders.

Their two lonely hearts – one old, world wise, and tired, one young and already burdened with an unknown grief – found solace in each other's company.


	2. 1 Training

**I didn't feel the need to throw in disclaimers until this chapter as the first chapter was focused entirely of characters of my own devising. On that note, however, I would like to say for this chapter that I do not own any characters or anything else from Death Note.**

**I know the story starts a little slow with regards to the involvement of Death Note characters, but I felt that Wren was a character that needed a background and introduction, so that you could understand her and get to know her – she is a woman who's quite different from the norm, and I didn't want her to be a "flat" character.**

**Also, as a side note, the nickname Wren is actually pretty symbolic – it was completely by chance that this happened, but I read up on druids and celtic knots and symbols while I was trying to figure out what form the mark would take. I already knew that that's what I wanted her nickname to be, and I was quite pleased at all the extra info I was able to find. I'll explain more as bits and pieces come out into the open.**

**Please, leave comments and let me know what you think.**

**-E**

Chapter 1 – Training

Wren, he'd called her. His Wren. It wasn't her real name, she'd told him, any more than his real name was Red. But she liked it as a pet name. It even sounded close enough to part of her name to be a shortened version of it. His name was Kairne Wallace, known as Red for most of his career.

He lived far away from most people – people in suburbia didn't really enjoy living next to weird neighbors that collected weapons and used to be mercenaries.

It wasn't long before Wren was wandering around his house and around the woods that had so frightened her in the dark. He was always close by, making sure to keep her safe. She was brilliant. She learned to read and write – _well_ – by the age of 5. Everything he taught her – from math to history – she soaked up like a sponge. She tore through every book in his house. Since most of these books were about tactics and strategies and wars or books of philosophies, he wondered if they were appropriate material for a child in her tender years. He _tried_ buying her dolls and dresses and books that storekeepers had told him were for young ladies – books about girls with horses, or girls winning over their high school love, or whatever other nonsense the shop ladies had foisted on him with tales of how their girls loved them – but she took very little interest in any of them.

She wore jeans and t-shirts and explored the woods. She begged for stories of his days as a merc. She read tales of daring-do and adventure. She learned to cook with him and help out around the house. She found his weapons collection.

He'd been long despairing that he had done badly by her – that he had already failed in her upbringing by not being able to interest her in the typical "womanly" things. But he hadn't known _WHAT_ to do the day that he came outside to find that she'd taken a sharpened kodachi – a Japanese short sword – and was trying to hack up a tree with it. He'd run out, afraid she'd hurt herself with the weapon, and taken it from her, scolding her. Small blessing that she hadn't grabbed one of the guns in his collection instead.

Wren had been undaunted in the face of his scolding, commenting that she needed the swords to vanquish monsters, and if he was afraid of her getting hurt, why didn't he just _teach _her how to use it without getting injured. She was only 8, but she'd always been precocious mentally. Physically, she was growing tall and strong and tan from running through the woods barefoot day in and day out, and her red hair glowed with golden highlights from the sun.

He'd sent her to her room. Her eyes had flashed golden with anger and she'd stormed off, slamming the door to the house. He gathered up the sword, sighing and looking at its hilt of polished rowan wood, thinking.

He hadn't told her this, but he'd called up one of his old friends who was also retired. He'd heard that old Whammy, once known as Watari, had used his retirement to start orphanages, and he wondered if he should send her to one. Red just wasn't sure he was equipped to raise a young lady, especially sense he seemed to already have failed quite dismally. He'd told Whammy about Wren, about how brilliant she seemed to be, and the man had mentioned that one of his orphanages – one called Whammy House – had been created for children as especially gifted as Wren seemed to be. But Red was loathe to give up the girl, who he now viewed as if she was his own daughter.

_It would be as if I abandoned her, just as her own mother had that night when we met,_ Red thought. Wren had told him what she remembered of where she'd been before the woods all those years ago. It seemed like she'd lived alone with her mother, who had taken her on a long car drive one night and stopped far from any town, taking her out of the car and leaving her there. Wren hadn't known why her own mother would do such a thing, but the memories obviously pained her deeply. Perhaps it had been something to do with how her green eyes changed color with her moods – going from green to different shades of gold depending on how strongly she felt and what she was feeling. Perhaps it had something to do with the marking on her chest that he'd named her for. He didn't think he could do that to his Wren.

He didn't _want_ to do that to his Wren. He needed her. He had been living out here for years, disconnected from everything around him, living in his memories of past glories and past battles, alone. Then she had come into his life and merrily proceeded to turn everything upside down with a grin and a flash of green eyes.

He was deep in thought as he walked back inside, making his way past the shut door to her room and into the room where he kept his weapons collection from his years as a fighter. Some of the weapons were purely ornamental, but others had been used, and used well. One wall was devoted almost entirely to gun racks, another to swords. When he'd been a merc, he'd always carried a sword with him along with whatever guns he was using. It was a strange practice in this day and age, but he'd found it useful in many close-quarters situations. People just didn't expect to see someone with a sword or knife. And they _really_ didn't expect that person to know how to use the weapon. He hung the kodachi up and looked around the room.

This was what he knew best. He was a fighter. He'd been one of the best. Throughout his life, he had worked to be something beyond the ordinary. He'd been so good that he could _choose_ which side of a battle to fight on. He could choose the people he worked with, the clients he would be willing to spend his time guarding during a contract. He'd been able to avoid the morally unscrupulous or overly greedy clients, and he'd been able to live to his own code of honor even in a job notorious for being full of people who lacked honor.

Never once had he killed an innocent.

**0000000000000000000000000000**

In this room was all he had to offer his daughter, if she stayed with him. His specialty had been fighting and using his skills to protect people.

His eyes travelled down the weapons. Everything in this room was created originally with the intention of destruction or killing. Under his use, the weapons had gained a new purpose – not that of killing for the sake of killing, but that of protecting the people who needed it. Her favorite stories weren't in any books – they were the stories he'd told her of his time as a fighter, as a mercenary, as a bodyguard.

He could send her to Whammy House to learn whatever his old friend Watari would teach her. Or he could teach her here. He could share his lifetime of knowledge with her. He could teach her the difference between honor and pride, and show her how to look beyond the obvious. He could see if she wanted to live her life by the same code he had. But what kind of life for a young woman was that?

He left the room and walked down the hall, standing in front of her door. He could hear her sniffling within her room.

What could he do? He didn't want to lose his daughter. But he wanted to give his Wren the chance to fly.

At last, he knocked quietly on the door.

"Wren?" he called. The girl looked up from the bed, wiping her eyes on her sleeve before meeting his gaze. "Wren…," he came over to sit on the bed beside her. She watched him, unmoving. "Wren, a friend o' mine has offered you a place in his… boarding school. It's a place fer younglings like yerself – ones that soak up every bit o' knowledge they can get their hands on." He stopped for a minute, and she waited for him to continue, nervous.

"You could go there an' learn more n' I could teach ye," Red stated. "Ye could be with young people yer own age, that're smart enough to keep up with ye. Ye'd get to be somewhere 'sides this middle o' nowhere place. Ye'd learn more there that I could ever teach ye, and it would be about things that would be good fer ye to know."

She gazed at him, gold sparks dancing in her eyes. Tears began to form and she struggled to keep her young voice steady. "Do you not want me anymore?" she began. "I promise I'll never even go in that room again… Please, daddy… Don't send me away." She hugged him tight and began to cry in earnest.

Red was shocked. She'd never called him "daddy" before. He'd thought of her as his daughter, but… He'd never dreamed that she saw him that way. He put his arms around the young girl and held her until her sobs quieted.

_I can't send her away. She's my own, _he thought. He looked through her open door and back down the hallway towards his weapons. He thought of all the books, his books, that she'd been reading for the past couple years. He thought of her running through the woods, laughing and happy in her freedom. He remembered the way she hung on his every word as he told her tales of his previous life, how her eyes sparkled in excitement and determination as she listened to him. _I could teach her. I could teach her what I know. It's no' much o' a legacy, but 'tis all I know. I could teach her the skills to be the very best. She's already strong an' fast an' agile from runnin' in the woods all her life. I could give her the sense o' honor that she would need to survive an' be strong. She could be like I was… able to hold on to herself. Able to hold to her ideals. And she would have the skills to do what she seems to want to do…_ he remembered her in the woods this morning. Vanquishing "monsters" with a sword too big for her. _She could be a protector._

He looked down at the girl holding on to him for dear life. His daughter-in-heart, though not by blood. "My Wren… do ye want to stay here that bad?" he asked.

"Yes, father," She stated simply.

"Then how would you like to learn how to defeat real monsters, me lass?" he asked her, smiling gently. She stared at him, confused.

"Tis no' much, what I know. What I've done me whole life. But if that's what ye want – to stay here with me, and learn how to use those weapons without hurtin' yerself…" he took a deep breath, "then that's what I'll teach ye."

Her bright grin and shining eyes were all the answer he needed to see.

**0000000000000000000000**

Over the years Wren grew tall, lithe, and strong. Red taught her hand to hand fighting, how to shoot, and even sword fighting. She learned tactics and strategies, and studied the writings of old leaders. She listened avidly to stories of Red's own experiences, soaking up everything with determination. She became a crack shot and a master swordswoman, her young body adapting quickly and memorizing the movements that she practiced day in and day out. Her observational skills were unmatched.

She'd known what she wanted to do. She just hadn't known the words for it yet. She wanted to protect people. She believed strongly in duty. She believed in using the skills Kairne was sharing with her to better the world in any way she could.

Old Red also taught her many other things – a love of music, a love of nature, and the skills to be a truly talented chef, should she ever decide the mercenary world wasn't what she was cut out for, among other things. As she got older, she began to recognize something that was different about herself. She realized that she could sense things about certain people – distrusting them on sight or knowing when someone meant her ill. Her injuries seemed to heal strangely fast sometimes, when the need was urgent. When pressed, her senses seemed sharper and more defined. This was especially obvious to her when she was fighting.

There was one point in her training where she'd fallen and broken her arm. It had healed enough to be useable in two weeks. And it was fully functional and strong after barely a month. Both Red and the doctor had been puzzled by the x-rays. Finally, she decided to ask Red about it.

Red hadn't been too surprised. He'd seen the x-rays himself, after all, and he knew that his Wren wouldn't let an important question like that just lie. He'd told her everything he could remember of the old stories of strange powers. He'd been of the opinion that these strange abilities could be linked to the way her eyes had changed colors, and to the mark that she kept hidden on her chest at all times. She always wore shirts that were high enough to hide the marking above her heart. She didn't know why she had the desire to hide it, she just did. Overall, though, he told her not to worry about whatever it was – it was obviously to her advantage, and not strong enough to bother her or make her stand out too much.

She'd decided to keep it secret as much as possible.

**00000000000000000000000000000**

As Red started to get on in his years, he began reestablishing his old contacts. He even contacted his old friend Watari again, just to give him an update on his protégé' and daughter. He proudly supplied Watari with pictures of his girl. He also gave Watari one other thing – a picture of the mark that Wren kept secret, and instructions not to mention the mark to anyone else. Watari hadn't had any extra information on the mark than what Red already had, so he put the matter aside in his mind.

When Wren turned 17, Red began putting the word out about his protégé', wanting to make sure that she would be established in the world in the event of his death. He was getting old, and his age was starting to bother him. Old injuries pained him, and newer ones healed slower and less thoroughly. But his daughter blossomed under his tutelage.

Young Wren had started clamoring to get away from the forest and the tiny villages around for more than just training and visits. She had grown into a fine, independent- minded young woman who believed herself ready to meet the world head on. Red was proud that his Wren was ready to spread her wings, and he'd contacted people he knew to arrange her first job. He went with her, to provide advice and watch her back. Before they'd left, he'd given her a gift- the kodachi that he'd seen her playing with that day in the woods so long ago. He told her that a Japanese priestess had given him the sword after one of his jobs, telling him he'd know who to give it to when the time came. She was ready – experience and practice would be what she needed to improve from now on.

Her first job flew by, and she succeeded with flying colors – keeping her principle safe in a political cesspool, and capturing an assassin that had been sent to kill him.

From such a bright start, her career continued to move on in leaps and bounds. Job offers came in from around the world. Red had handled possible clients for her in the start, and he taught her what to look for before signing a contract or accepting a job, and especially before choosing a side in a battle – he didn't want his daughter's sense of duty and will to protect tainted by greed and hate.

A few years later, age began to seriously tell on Red. He grew weak and unable to leave his bed. He passed from this world when Wren was 20, leaving his legacy in her skills and her sense of honor and duty. Wren loved her father, and his passing left a deep wound on her heart and spirit. But she continued to do what she did best, honoring his memory in the best way she knew – by continuing to do what she needed to.

**000000000000000000000000**

She was the best. She could pick and choose the side she wanted to fight on. Her record was flawless, and her mind and body were sharp. Throughout the years, she learned the limitations of the "power" that she held in her body, using it to enhance her senses, get a "feel" for people, and speed her own healing. Through it all she never forgot her mentor and father. She never forgot the lessons he'd taught her.

Two years had passed since the passing of Kairne, and her skills had grown. She was at the best she had ever been. She traveled the world in her profession, keeping her eyes and ears open for information as she did her best to pass through life unnoticed between jobs.

She had heard a disturbing new story about a killer in Japan – someone who had been dubbed "Kira". Somehow, he was killing criminals without being present, by _heart attack_. Such an attack seemed almost supernatural to her. She didn't consider her own powers supernatural – they were simply extensions of what one could normally do after all. But this… this monster could kill from afar. Could kill without guilt, without feeling, believing his own judgment to be equal to the gods. She despised it. She didn't know if there _were _gods and demons out there, but even if there weren't it wasn't right to assume to be one.

She heard there was an investigation starting in Japan to find this "Kira," and put a stop to him. Wren intended to do something she'd never done before – to _offer_ her services to help capture this monster in a human's body.

To do her duty.

To protect.

This would be the first time she would go to volunteer her services to a client who hadn't approached her first. More importantly, this client would have every reason to distrust someone he would doubtless only see as a "common" mercenary. That's what people typically saw when she announced who she was and her profession. Maybe they believed her to be a little more skilled than the norm, but still nothing more than a mercenary.

People always seemed to ignore facts that were right under their noses, especially if they went counter to what they wanted to believe.

But that was irrelevant. Kira's reign of terror would end. She _would _assist. Her duty to protect would be fulfilled yet again.

She would not - could not - fail.

****

Wren woke in the dark in a cold sweat, her eyes flickering around the room. Dreams of battlefields survived, blood spilled, and holding the cold, aged hand of the man who had loved her and taught her everything were never very restful.

She got herself out of the hotel bed and made her way to the restroom, turning the light and the faucet on to splash cold water on her face. As she dried her face with a towel, she glanced in the mirror.

Gold flecks surfaced and hid themselves in her green eyes under her very gaze.

Wren sighed, looking away.

It was very early in the morning, but there was little point to going back to sleep. She needed to get ready for today.

She walked back into the bedroom and opened the curtains to view the skyline of the Japanese city. Today, she was going to head to the police headquarters where she heard the Kira investigation team was situated to offer her services to the investigators. She looked behind her into the mirror.

She had chosen to do this job completely undisguised. Ever since her first job, she had taken precautions to hide her true appearance – dying her hair, wearing colored contacts, using special cosmetics and concealing clothing. But today, everything hinged on the investigators believing her. Today, she had to be completely honest and out in the open for them to even consider what worth she would have to the investigation itself.

She contemplated herself in the mirror. She was tall but not thin. Rather, she was muscled from her years of training, with broadish shoulders and hips and a generous chest. People looking at her would never get the impression of proper maidenly fragility. _Some people just don't know how to appreciate curves anymore_, she grinned to herself. Her unbound red hair fell down to her waist, and her face was dotted with lightly colored freckles across her nose. She looked very little like a trained fighter. _But it's all to my advantage if people will underestimate me, normally, _she thought.

She went to shower and brush her teeth. After drying off and combing out her long hair, she applied a light coating of makeup – just a dusting of blush and some natural-colored eye shadow that would brighten the emerald of her eyes. She didn't believe in caking on makeup in the normal scheme of things – it just looked fake to her. The colors were meant to enhance what was natural, not to conceal and create something that was not.

She chose something fancy to wear today – she needed to look impressive to the police. She wouldn't take her pistols into the headquarters – that was asking for too much. But, strangely enough, the old sword that Kairne had given her had never set off any metal alarms or anything, so long as it was locked properly in its sheathe. In fact, people seemed to ignore the sword unless she drew attention to it or drew it. She tried not to think about just who that priestess could have been that had given it to him all those years before she'd been born. She had some crimson pants that flowed when she moved. They covered her feet when she stood still, and almost looked like a dress when she wasn't moving. Better, they wouldn't hinder her movement in the least, and would enable her to go barefoot without anyone knowing – her years running through the forest around Kairne's home had toughened her feet enough that she felt comfortable going barefoot in all but the coldest climates. Next she put on a white, fitted undershirt that had a high enough neck to hide the mark on her chest. The sleeves came halfway down her arms, ending just above her elbows. A sleeveless garnet-colored and gold trimmed tunic went over everything. It fell midway down her thigh, but it had slits on either side to prevent it from interfering with her movements in anyway. A brown leather belt went around her waist to hold everything together. She wore the sword attached to her belt, hanging horizontally behind her below her belt.

She looked one last time in the mirror before she left. The reds in her outfit accented the red of her hair and the green of her eyes. Quickly, she braided her hair partway down and tied it in a long tail. The braiding was only to ensure that it would stay back properly. A few wisps escaped the braid to frame her face, but it wasn't enough to bother her. She nodded to her reflection.

Wren spun around and walked towards the door, her eyes shining with determination.

Today she would have to convince the police and whatever detectives were working with them on this case that she would be an asset to the investigation team. She would use her expertise to stop this Kira monster.

Whatever it took.

She was ready.


	3. 2 Duty

**Here we go, headed into the Death Note realm and all that jazz. I don't own any of the characters or anything from Death Note.**

**On a side note, everything isn't just going to follow the normal story line. I feel like the addition of the new character would change the story anyway, just by being there to affect decisions made and such.**

**Also, a hard pear cider is the perfect accompaniment for this work. And I cursed my computer out when it froze when I was almost done with this chapter and blessed Microsoft office recovery when it brought back almost all the document. I would have had this out last night if not for that particular escapade. Sorry 'bout that.**

**And one more thing that people may find useful. Strategy and tactics are two different things. Strategy is something that is larger view – it's something that's not quite as flexible to the battlefield conditions. Tactics are what you use to adapt to new situations.**

**And sorry about the 000000000's as page breaks. I tried using asterisks and tilde's, but apparently doesn't approve of using them as page breaks and they wouldn't show up when I uploaded the files to the site. Weird.**

**Let me know what you think, I hope everyone enjoys it.**

**-E**

Chapter 2 – Duty

Wren sighed to herself as she walked down the street, eyes darting to and fro and watching for even the possibility of something dangerous. People swarmed around her, always keeping a distance between themselves and this strange young woman walking in their midst.

She knew she was different, she always had been.

The only person she had ever truly trusted had been her beloved foster-father, Red. She held everyone else at a distance, lest she open herself up to the same sort of pain she still felt from her long-ago abandonment. She didn't hold that distance that people kept between them and herself against them. She refused to use their differences as an excuse to _not_ strive to protect them.

Sometimes she felt that all that was keeping her moving was her sense of duty. She really no longer felt the will to live for her own sake anymore. Living for the sake of her duty to others was all she had.

When Red was alive, she had been cared for and loved. She'd had a reason to return home between jobs. But now… there was nothing but a long string of empty apartments and hotel rooms behind her. She never stayed in one place for long anymore.

Life itself was full of music. Every person moved to their own beat. Battle itself was a dance, in which the person who moved to the strongest beat would win. Once your opponent was dancing to your beat instead of their own… victory was assured. Her song had gotten softer in the years since Kairne's death. But she kept moving. She kept doing what she knew was her duty.

Wren knew that eventually she would come across an opponent for whom her sense of duty would not be enough to allow her to prevail. And she feared that fact even as she welcomed the end to her loneliness.

**00000000000000000000000**

On the giant screen in the middle of the square was the image of a man – Lind L. Tailor. Wren looked up at the image and cursed to herself. _Why do the people who need to work in utmost secrecy INSIST on putting themselves in harm's way!, _she thought. She'd happened to reach the square just as the broadcast started. Apparently the police were already insisting on putting themselves in utmost danger, before she'd even gotten there to offer her assistance in _lessening _that danger. _They obviously need my assistance even more than I thought they would_. She'd heard the man announce himself as the great detective L. Wren almost couldn't believe such a supposedly great detective at the head of the ICPO could possibly be this _stupid_. She watched with her mouth open as the man continued his announcement.

"Criminals around the world are being murdered by a serial killer. I consider this act of crime to be the most atrocious act of murder in history, and I will not rest until the person or persons responsible are brought to justice. Kira, I will hunt you down. I will find you." Wren's eyes were wide in amazement at the man's pronouncement. Her mouth closed and the right side of her lips curled into a small half smile as she watched. _This guy's certainly got nuts at least. Not much else, though, if he's so willing to show his face to state these things. But I suppose they defiantly needed to be said, _Wren thought. _Kira is a monster. And he needs to have someone stand up to him._

"Kira," the man on the television continued, "I've got a pretty good idea what your motivation might be, and I can guess what you hope to achieve. However, what you're doing right now is evil." _Hmm… Someone's certainly baiting the bear on this one. There has to be a reason why he's doing this. This is just too... obvious. It's like a dare,_ Wren thought to herself, her eyes glued to the giant TV screen.

Everything was silent for almost a minute in the square. Every person's face was turned to the giant screen. Their eyes were all glued to the man standing up to Kira on the television. Even the people driving cars had stopped their vehicles to stare.

And then the man gasped, clutching his chest, and his head fell to the desk. Wren's hand made an involuntary movement towards the projection, as if she could stop what was happening. "Damn…," she cursed under her breath. Kira really can kill just like that. _How will I be able to face him? What measures can I take against a power like that?_

Then the screen turned white with a black calligraphic L in the middle. An altered voice came through the speakers in the square. Even with the voice alterations, however, the shock of the person speaking was audible. "I had to test this just in case, but I never thought this would actually happen," the machine-like voice pronounced. "Kira… it seems you can kill people without having to be there in person. I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't just witnessed it. Listen to me, Kira. If you did indeed kill Lind L. Tailor, the man that we just saw die on television, I should tell you that he was an inmate whose execution was scheduled for today. That was not me." Wren's angry gasp of protest at the man's death turned into a full blown grin. _Well played, Mr. L._ _And now we have information on Kira's personality as well. What else will this broadcast bring to light?_ Wren was astounded and impressed at this man's strategy for dealing with a monster that could kill in such a way.

"But I assure you, L is real. I do exist. Now, try to kill me." The crowd around her began to murmur in shock. Wren herself was deep in thought, her hand cupping her chin and her eyes down, listening with only half her attention as the real L continued to needle Kira and taunt him, trying to get Kira to kill him. After a minute or two of the crowd's tense exclamations over the events on the screen, Wren came to the conclusion that L wasn't going to die. Kira couldn't kill him.

_There must be things that Kira needs to be able to use his power from afar. He can't just kill anyone he wants to apparently. _Her gaze wandered back up to the black L on the screen. _I wonder… if all the murdered criminals had their names and faces broadcast like that man Lind L. Tailor? _She made a mental note to check over the information she had available and see how the dead criminals had been publicized. "So there are some people you can't kill. You've given me a useful hint." Wren snapped back to reality as she realized that L was done trying to taunt Kira into action and had continued with his broadcast. "I'll tell you something that I think you'll also find interesting. Although this was announced as a worldwide broadcast, the truth is, we were only broadcasting in the Kanto region of Japan. I had planned to broadcast this message around the world until we found you, but it looks like that won't be necessary. I now know where you are." Wren was floored by this point. This man's strategy was stunning. His actions were genius. She had thought she was beyond being impressed by brilliant moves like this but… This went beyond anything she'd ever seen from another person.

L continued on to tell Kira about how he'd tracked down the most likely position that Kira was operating from. Since Wren had done this herself, and come to Japan upon finding out (through ways probably best left in the dark) that the Kira investigation was to be headed in Japan, she resumed her train of thought. _They'll need my expertise more than ever, even with this man on their side._ Wren thought. _He may have brilliant strategies, but I still have more experience guarding people from outside threats. I may not be able to do anything about a heart attack in itself, but there are security measures I can suggest that will improve the safety of everyone on the investigation team._ She looked at the emblem on the screen thoughtfully. _Especially if L himself has to get personally involved. I've heard he's never shown his face, that the only way to contact him is through a man named… _oh what was it…_ Watari, that's it._ Wren wrenched her attention back to the television screen as L began to move on with the broadcast.

"To be completely honest with you, I'd never expected things would go this well, but… It won't be too long now before I am able to sentence you to death. Naturally, I'm very interested to know how you're able to commit these murders without being present, but I don't mind waiting a little bit longer. You can answer all of my questions when I catch you." _Well, someone's certainly got a bit of an ego_, she observed. Wren was amused. "Let's meet again soon, Kira." As the television went blank, Wren turned her thoughts towards the whole of the broadcast.

People were beginning to disperse from the square, now that the spectacle on the screen was apparently at an end. She could still hear people babbling on about "Kira vs. L," and other ridiculousness. She could even hear some of the people cheering Kira on. She sniffed in disdain. _Kira may be trying to rid the world of evil,_ she thought,_ but he's defiantly going about it in the wrong way. It's like he's a human that somehow now believes himself to be as infallible as a god._ She'd noted how quick Kira had been to kill the man Lind L. Tailor, despite the fact that there had been no prior knowledge of the man's crimes broadcast to the public. _Anyone that stands in Kira's way is in danger… _

Wren quietly found a bench to perch herself on, as she bent her head in thought. She needed to pick out whatever other information could be gleaned from the broadcast, and file it away in her memory so that she would have the information when (there was no _if _about it in her mind at this point) she began turning her attentions to keeping the investigation force safe. Anything, from information about Kira and L's personalities to information about Kira's power, would be useful during this next challenge.

_I know that Kira requires something beyond mere knowledge of someone's existence to kill them, judging by the fact that detective L is still alive to taunt him. I've surmised that it's likely that knowledge of someone's appearance and their full name may be important – I need to check this over later by looking at the people who have actually been killed by Kira and making sure that both these criteria are met in every case. _Wren filed that away. She almost wished that she carried around a little more technology than her plain work phone. True, the thing was virtually water and shock proof and untraceable (she'd special ordered it because of how hard on her possessions she tended to be), but it couldn't do much for browsing the internet for information at the push of a button. She sighed, reigning in her thoughts once more. _It's obvious that anyone standing in Kira's way is a target now, not just criminals. Could be some sort of god-complex going on in that monster's head._ Another point to think on. Wren grinned. _I've seen that L also has quite a bit of an ego, himself._ She had no idea why this flaw in the apparently brilliant man amused her so much. Perhaps it was because her own ego was so obvious. _Everyone has a right to be proud of what they're good at doing,_ she decided, shrugging to herself. _L has confirmed Kira's location as within the Kanto region of Japan, so I was right in heading here._

After a few more minutes of thought, she decided that this was most of what she would be able to glean from the broadcast and stood up. _Well, let's get this party started, hmm?_

Once more, she set her feet on the sidewalk and continued on the path to the police plaza – and her next job.

**00000000000000000000**

"Well, that about sums up our report for today, if nothing has anything else relevant to add then-"

"Chief Yagami!" an officer exclaimed as he burst into the room. "There's a woman here who claims she wants to help with the Kira case. She's Wren – I mean she says that she's _the _Wren."

Chief Yagami's eyes widened as he looked at the distraught young man. "And were you able to verify this claim or –"he began.

"No sir, he did not. But then, when someone tends to alter her appearance with every job she takes, it becomes a bit difficult for someone to verify anything about me." Wren interrupted, walking into the conference room.

The young officer's face flushed with anger and shame. "I told you to wait outside…," he began.

"Yes, and you led me right to the unguarded door to the conference room and left me standing there with no escort," Wren pointed out, exasperated with the lack of what she considered common-sense security measures. _Just because we're in the police plaza doesn't mean someone couldn't find a way to get by the front desk,_ she thought to herself.

A number of the investigators faces were beginning to flush with anger at her interruption – most importantly, Chief Yagami looked as if he was about to explode as he glared at the intrusive young woman.

Wren figured she better start talking if she didn't want to end up with bullet holes as her accessory for the day. She cleared her throat and quickly bowed to Chief Yagami and then turned and bowed to the man in the back row who was sitting behind a computer with the same L emblem she had seen earlier in the day during the ICPO broadcast – she assumed the man had to be Watari, and that the real detective L was on the other end of that computer screen.

"Forgive me Chief Yagami, sir, but I felt that I needed to state my case in person or I would not be heard out at all, considering the difficulty inherent in verifying my identity and the fact that people don't tend to take me all too seriously at times," Wren began. "I came here to volunteer my services to this investigation team. I have looked into what the killer known as 'Kira' has been doing, and I sincerely despise it. I am, as this man announced," she gestured to the young officer who had been at the front counter when she first announced her intentions, "Wren. _The _Wren, the mercenary. I am the best in the world at what I do. Also, if you'll be kind enough to look at my profile and skills and my track record, I believe you may see many reasons why I am suited to assisting you."

"And what need do the police have of a mercenary fighter on a murder case?" Chief Yagami replied, seeming slightly mollified by her show of respect and her now-calm demeanor and speech.

"Sir," Wren said, turning back towards the Chief but angling so that her back wouldn't be to the room of pissed off police officers or, more importantly, to the man with the computer in the back of the room, "I possess many skills above and beyond those of the average mercenary. I am a leading modern specialist in the areas of strategy and tactics, under numerous aliases that I cannot reveal, as they are relevant to my work. I was apprenticed in my trade when I was very young indeed, under a man named Kairne Wallace, also known to the world at large as Red. I have also have spent more time and done more jobs involving body guarding than actual mercenary work." She looked around the room carefully. "Every person in this room is putting their lives in great danger, as judging by that broadcast earlier. Anyone standing in Kira's way is now obviously a target, not just criminals alone. I can help to increase the safety of the people working on this case, using my knowledge, experience, and expertise."

Many faces in the room sobered at this announcement, as if they had been trying to ignore or deny that little fact and hadn't wanted to be faced with it this directly. "There are also a couple other reasons that I am suitable for the task of working to increase the security around the personnel in this room. The first," she held up a finger, "is that I believe from my observations of the broadcast and my own look into the deaths that have been occurring that Kira needs something beyond simple knowledge that someone exists to kill them. If this was not the case, then detective L could no longer be talking to you, because he'd be dead after baiting Kira earlier today. I believe Kira needs knowledge of a person's appearance to kill and knowledge of their full name. I am, quite literally, the only person alive who knows what my real name is. I don't even have a birth certificate. So I am guarded on that front. The second thing that Kira needs to kill is knowledge of a person's features. I am well-known for changing my appearance on a job to job basis, so finding an actual picture of me as I am now, undisguised, would be difficult to first find, and near impossible to identify as the real thing. This brings me to the second reason why my assistance would be useful," she held up another finger and walked over to Chief Yagami's desk, leaning towards him over it in earnest. "Because I myself am safe from Kira, this would allow me to focus on one thing and one thing only – how best to use my skills and my craft to keep all of you here alive."

Wren paused and looked around the room, her face totally serious as she began to pace around the room, slowly moving towards the computer and camera in the back of the room. "Everyone here is a prime target," she clasped the wrist of her left hand behind her back with her right hand and moved with perfect balance, projecting the image of an experienced and disciplined fighter to everyone in the room now that she had become so earnest and serious. "Kira himself obviously has a very black-and-white view of what is right and wrong." A couple people started and glanced behind them at the screen to hear this young woman echoing what L had just mentioned during the meeting earlier. "The people here are setting out to essentially get in Kira's way, capture him, and stop him from dispensing what Kira seems to think is 'justice.' Thus," her eyes travelled back to meet Chief Yagami's, "everyone here will become a target to his anger. Kira was willing and eager to kill L's stand in earlier, without hesitation."

"I can help. I can help protect the people in this room by suggesting improvements to security around here, and by taking my own measures to guard key people. I can help to keep people here safer. Even if I only make a little bit of a difference, isn't that small difference in the amount of safety for the people here enough to justify the worth of my assistance?" she asked the room.

**000000000000**

L was amazed that this woman had had the determination and the will to come here and put herself forth as a volunteer for the investigation. Even with her name and face being unknown, she was still in just as much danger as he was, and would become just as prime a target if she started working with them here. His fingers flew across the keyboard as he accessed any and all information he had available on this woman – Wren – in both the public files and the archive that he and Watari kept up in their spare time over the years.

His dark eyes flowed over the words on the screen as he read quickly through her records and profile. Strangely, the records that Watari and he kept seemed to have extra information and filed in them. He opened them to reveal pictures – one that he presumed was a picture of this woman when she was younger (she looked about 17 or 18 in the picture) and one that was a photo of some kind of strange marking. _What is this?_ He thought, typing in inquiries as he continued his information collection. He listened with half his attention as the woman continued her speech. Once she paused waiting for an answer, he decided to give her one.

**00000000000**

Suddenly, a disguised voice emerged from the laptop at the back table. "Ignoring the fact that we still haven't been able to verify that you are who you claim to be Miss Wren, why should we trust a common mercenary – someone who fights and kills for money – to help protect us from another killer?"

Wren's face flushed in anger, and something akin to a mild disappointment flashed in her eyes. She should have expected that even the great L would overlook something that was probably right in front of his face, if it went against what his conception of a mercenary was like. She turned to face the computer, gazing straight into the camera lens rather than looking at the screen.

**L could've sworn he saw something akin to sadness in her eyes, but it was gone before he could even begin to be sure.**

"I would've thought the great detective L would have noticed." She stated, her gaze unwavering.

**L was slightly unnerved and a little annoyed. He used the computer and camera combo because it kept people from gazing straight into the camera most times – he almost thought she was looking at the camera on purpose, to supply the illusion of looking him straight in the eyes. He pulled up the picture of the woman as a 17 or 18 year old and proceeded to compare what was in the databanks with what was standing – figuratively – in front of him.**

"To begin with, I am a 'common' mercenary just as much as you are a 'common' detective, L. I am the _best_. That means I can pick and choose what jobs to take – I can choose what side of a conflict I want to be on. I can choose what jobs I will and will not do. And trust me, I've always chosen very carefully." Wren had walked by everyone in the room to stand and talk directly in front of the computer. The man called Watari was still in too much shadow to make out any features under the concealing layers of the hat and face mask that the man was wearing, even for her better-than-average eyesight.

**Now L was peeved. He bit his thumb in vexation. She'd challenged him, in a way that made it seem like she thought the reasons behind the challenge should be obvious. Quickly he finished comparing the woman in front of the camera to the picture on his computer screen – the images possessed the same emerald green eyes, and brilliant red hair with golden highlights (though it was now down to her waist rather than her shoulders). The freckles across the woman's nose appeared the same as the girl's, though they seemed more refined on the more mature woman's features. Her shoulders and hips were broader than the girl in the photo and her chest was more… mature. She seemed a bit more muscular as well, but it was hard to tell with the loose clothes she was wearing. She seemed tougher than a woman had a right to be, overall, and gave the impression of being extremely self-assured when it came to her profession. **

**He stopped there and almost smiled. Almost. **

**Almost as self-assured in her profession as he was in his. **

Watari smiled to himself beneath his cloak. He had never met the child-protégé that his friend Red had talked to him about all those years ago, but he could almost hear an echo of Kairne himself in the young woman's speech to the police. When the woman had announced the name of her mentor as well as his alias, he'd been almost certain that the woman was who she claimed to be – Kairne had only told his name to a select few, Watari himself being one of them. He was also rather amused at the tone the woman was taking with L; if this was Kairne's foster-daughter, it might be good for L to be challenged by someone on the same level for once. But, the final decision on her involvement in the case was to be L's. He leaned back a little bit and continued watching events unfold.

Wren raised an eyebrow, pausing for a moment to see if a reply to her challenge was forthcoming. She cleared her throat, "If you'll look at my record, you'll find that I've almost _never_ sided with the aggressor in any conflict, even when the aggressive side offered me a substantially higher price. You'll also find that, over 80% of the time, I chose to work in the capacity of a body guard rather than that of a fighter. And, while you'll notice that I have no losses and no deaths of a principle under my care, my kill count is…"

"Zero." L finished. "In all your missions, you have never killed anyone? Forgive me if I find that difficult to believe, Miss Wren."

Wren looked away for a moment and looked back, her eyes flickering with dark amber flecks in grief. "You're right. That's not… entirely true." She took a seat on a table top across from the computer, paying little attention to the others in the room. They would arrest her or they would not, she wasn't going to lie at a point where gaining the trust of the people here was so important. "I have killed… once. This is something that may or may not be in the records you posess, and I would rather not go into the exact details behind it at this time. It is… a cause of great grief with me." She paused and looked around the room once more, giving voice to her thoughts on the matter. "I am being completely honest with all of you. If you feel the need to arrest me for doing my job, go ahead. Simply know this – I am not like Kira. He kills believing that he is serving justice. Like some kind of modern-day Raskolnikov."

**L was slightly surprised that the mercenary woman even knew who that was – he'd read Dostoyevsky's **_**Crime and Punishment**_** himself when he was young, during his time in the Whammy House. He locked his attention back on what Wren was saying.**

"Kira passes judgment and administers what he believes is just retribution from afar, with no blood on his hands. He sees people and their lives as names and numbers, black-and-white, with no in between and no appreciation for the differences inherent in every person. I am not a fighter to administer justice. I don't do what I do because I believe it is my right. I fight and _protect_ because I believe it is my _duty_." She took a deep breath. "Not everyone will do what's right with their lives. Not everyone will live perfectly – this is part of being human. It is my duty to protect people from what they cannot protect themselves from – the good people with the bad. And if my protection allows some of the bad to live on along with the good, at least it means that they will have continued chances to _change_. They may or may not, but my duty is to provide them with the opportunity. You can't change anything once you are dead."

**L and Watari were both stunned. Even Chief Yagami was surprised at what this young woman's sense of duty entailed. The detective looked at the young woman through the eyes of his camera lens in frank amazement to hear some of his own thoughts and beliefs nearly echoed in this woman's speech. Watari's eyes began to water as he began to see his old friend's beliefs echoing strongly in the young woman before him, who honored Red's memory by keeping his beliefs alive and strong. He could hear the truth in her words and knew that she honored him most because she **_**believed,**_** with every ounce of her being, what she was saying.**

"I tell you the truth when I say this. The one time I killed, the one time I saw a man's heart's blood stain my own hands and felt the stain on my soul…" she paused and took a shaky breath to control herself and keep herself from crying. She couldn't give the impression of such weakness to these men. "The one time I took someone's life, it saved hundreds… possibly thousands… of lives. And… I have never forgotten it. I will live with the grief of what I have done for the rest of my life." Her eyes darkened to amber as she spoke.

**L saw the true grief behind her eyes, though she struggled to hide it. After all, he'd lived with his own grief – the grief of knowing that he couldn't save everyone, confronting those who would devalue human life as he thought this woman (as a mercenary) would have – for years. How could he fail to notice a grief that nearly mirrored his own in the strange eyes of this woman?**

"You may see yourselves as the faces of justice, every one of you. I… I see myself as the face of duty. The knowledge of what I must do burns inside me, this duty and desire to protect whomever I can. Some days, it is all I have." She gulped, having not meant to add that last. She looked away and finished, "I used to fight for love of my foster-father. I used to fight for honor and the pride I took in my skills. Duty is all I have left in me, now."

**Watari's kind heart felt like it would break for this woman's pain and fallen innocence. Would things have turned out the same if she'd come to Whammy House all those years ago, when Kairne first suggested it? But then, she would not have grown into the woman she was now, she might not have the same ideals that Kairne had given her, as a gift for his heart's daughter, along with his teachings. Watari sighed, his heart heavy for this woman who was making her way the best she could, alone. **_**At least L has me,**_** he thought. **_**She's putting her life and her freedom on the line to do what she sees are her duty. **_**Watari only hoped that both L and Chief Yagami would see that fact as well. He hoped that when he was gone, L would carry on his teachings with as much faith as Wren did Red's.**

"I wish to assist you here. The way Kira kills… he knows no grief. He knows no regrets. He kills for no other reason than a belief that he is the tool of some sort of divine justice. And I want… I _need_ to help put an end to it.

"It is my duty." She finished, eyes gleaming.

She looked around the room, aware that these men could arrest her if they so chose. Never mind that many mercenaries had much higher kill counts than she did. She had come here and admitted her darkest secret before all of them.

Everyone in the room waited silently to hear what L would say, even the police.

**00000000000000000000**

Chief Yagami looked at Wren with something like respect in his eyes. He'd never known a woman to be so strong-willed and dedicated to what she believed was her duty. He thought to himself that what she perceived as her burden was more rightly a man's duty, but he didn't get to where he was without being able to assess the strengths and weaknesses of different people. He could see good points and bad points with involving this woman in the investigation, despite his distaste for having a woman in a position to head their defenses. But then, this was obviously no ordinary woman.

The Japanese police force wouldn't even be involved in the investigation if L hadn't asked them for their assistance. Yagami trusted L. And he was going to leave this call up to the mysterious and brilliant detective.

The woman moved to a cross-legged position on the desk across from the computer, rubbing her eyes with one hand.

L started at the woman from his position in a hotel across town. He had to put aside any emotions that her proclamation and her grief may have stirred in him to assess whether or not she could be allowed to join the investigation. He could tell that she'd been utterly, and brutally honest with them all. _There doesn't seem to be more than a 1 percent chance that this woman could be Kira,_ he thought. _Her observations and deductions were surprisingly close to my own. Despite her profession, the records do indicate that she has a tendency to make the effort to preserve lives rather than use them. _He pulled up another piece of information – her purchase of plane tickets to get to Japan two days before from somewhere in Scotland. _I believed Kira was operating from Japan to start with, and she hasn't been here for more than a few days. It's highly unlikely that she could be Kira, as she wouldn't have been able to hear about the first criminal that was killed from that location._ After a little more consideration, he put that worry aside in his mind. _She's not Kira._

Now on to the next consideration. He bit his thumb in thought. _Despite her knowledge of the name of the man whose alias was 'Red' I still can't be sure that she is, in fact, that man's protégé. _Red's real name had been in his personal files – the ones he and Watari added to whenever they had the chance. He rearranged his limbs into his customary crouch, to improve his deductive capabilities.

The woman sitting across from him from miles away in the police plaza was rubbing her eyes with one hand. _I could almost admire her sheer audacity in coming here and stating her case so boldly…_ he thought. Then he jerked his wandering attention back to the problem at hand.

Strangely enough, the one kill that she had mentioned was recorded in his personal files, though not in the public ones. The fact that she hadn't tried to hide a kill that wasn't public knowledge weighed in her favor, he decided. Both in the fact that she'd come here being brutally honest, and the fact that, in theory, only the actual Wren would know about the one kill on her record.

L's eyes were pulled back to the photo of the strange marking – a Celtic Triquetra that had an open-winged bird within it.

He turned on his microphone. "Miss Wren…"

Everyone in the conference room jumped when the modulated voice came on through the speakers, shattering the uneasy silence.

"Miss Wren, I have in my possession a picture of some sort of secret mark that could possibly be used to verify your identity. Do you know what it is I am referring to?"

Wren looked in the camera once more. "Yes." She stated simply.

"Well then, Miss Wren… Would you be so kind as to show me, so that your identity will be less in question?"

Wren looked nervous at the idea of exposing the mark that she'd kept hidden since she was young.

"Forgive me, Miss Wren." All eyes in the room were drawn to Watari, shocked that he'd spoken up. "I knew your foster-father Red when we were both younger. I remember discussing you with him at one point, and he mentioned that you had a mark that you wouldn't show to anyone. I understand your reluctance to expose such a thing, but it would also provide sufficient proof of your identity." Even though Watari didn't need further proof – he knew her for the daughter of his friend the moment she'd entered the room and begun her entreaty to them all.

L himself was surprised that Watari had chimed in – his guardian usually let him handle every aspect of the cases he took now that he was older.

Wren sensed kindliness from Watari that seemed almost familiar to her. She gulped and looked at the shadow-shrouded man. For a moment, he'd reminded her strongly of Red, the first night she'd met him – she'd trusted Red on sight. Something in her told her she could trust this man too. That made her somewhat nervous, as she strived to hold her emotions separate from everything and not trust anyone but herself nowadays. She shuddered and made up her mind.

Her right hand crept up to the neckline of her white undershirt and pulled it down, exposing the mark just above her breast, over her heart. One or two of the police officers craned their necks around to see what it was that caused such a reaction in the woman who had seemed so assured in coming here.

She locked her eyes on the camera and waited.


	4. 3 Beginnings

**I don't own Death Note, its characters, or its story. Unfortunately.**

**In case people didn't know in the last chapter, Raskolnikov is a character in the book **_**Crime and Punishment**_** by Dostoevsky. He's a brilliant but poor lawyer who develops the theory of the extraordinary man – people who are above normal in intelligence. These extraordinary people, according to his theory, have the right to dispense justice and punishment – including killing people (criminals) – because they are so far above the ordinary people that the law doesn't necessarily apply to them. In the book, Raskolnikov kills an old pawnbroker, in an attempt to prove his theory **_**and **_**to prove that he is one of these extraordinary men, and ends up killing the broker's sister as well, accidentally. Unlike Kira, however, the murders weigh heavily on Raskolnikov. It's a good book, and you should read it if you haven't.**

**As more of this story gets put together in my mind, the connections I'm making that tie everything together make me smile. Things are falling into place beautifully.**

**I found the perfect song for L the other day.**

**Also, thank you to everyone that's either following my story or added it to their favorites – or both!**

**And this quesadilla is delicious.**

**Enjoy, let me know if you like it!**

Chapter 3 – Beginning

**L was surprised at the change in Wren. She appeared… almost vulnerable… as she exposed the mark over her heart. He bit his thumb, deep in thought. **

** He correctly interpreted Chief Yagami's silence to mean that the decision on whether or not to involve this woman in the case was entirely up to him.**

** L wasn't usually one to ever be indecisive, but this case was different. It wasn't just himself and Watari this time – he had people under his direct command that he had a responsibility to, and that weighed heavily on his mind. More so than he'd like to admit to anyone.**

** He thought back to Watari's interruption a few minutes ago. **_**So, he knew her mentor then?**_** L wondered what Watari and Red had talked about in their discussion of her, however many years ago this discussion had been. **

_**The deductions she came to were concise and to the point. They even mirrored my own, which adds credibility to my own theories. She brought up important issues, even though they were difficult for some to talk about or even admit. **_**He had the feeling that some of Chief Yagami's men would have to face the issues that she'd brought up soon. They couldn't keep ignoring the ramifications of Kira's strange power for too much longer. **_**Her skills could be useful.**_

** Finally, L came to a decision.**

_**Strategy and tactics aren't just for use on a battlefield.**_

"Miss Wren," he began.

"Welcome to the team."

**00000000000000000000**

L instructed the police to share the information discussed in today's meeting with Wren. He also instructed them to consult with her about what changes she deemed necessary that could be implemented easily and quickly to improve security around the police headquarters.

"Improving the safety of members of the investigation team is of utmost importance at this time," L had told them. "Now that we have Miss Wren's expertise to consult, we should make use of anything she has to say." After thanking everyone for their time and efforts, he'd then signed off, the computer screen going blank as Watari snapped the laptop closed and put it away in his briefcase.

As Watari walked out of the room, Chief Yagami turned to Wren. "Well? It seems we are to be subject to any suggestions you have at this point, Miss… Wren," he said, his voice tinted just slightly with disdain. Wren chose to ignore it as the frustration of an older man who had just been told to take the suggestions of a much younger woman into account.

Wren's eyes lost their gold sparks and turned back to their usual emerald color as she turned her mind to quick and easy ways to improve the security and increase the safety of the members of the task force.

"If you will be so kind as to let me have a day to observe, I will let you know tomorrow what changes can be made in a quick and easy fashion, sir." She bowed to him once more, in an effort to decrease the injury to his pride by showing him respect.

_I can appease an old man's sense of pride if it will let me do my job, _she thought, stopping herself from gritting her teeth by force of will alone.

_Now, to focus on what's important…_

**0000000000000000000000**

Wren sighed in satisfaction over a job she thought was well done as she went over the changes she had made the previous day.

First of all, she'd gotten permission from the police to carry both her sword and her pistols openly or concealed. She'd stuck with long, loose cloth pants, as it was easy to hide leg hostlers for her guns underneath them. She also stayed barefoot. A long, plain white, and tunic-like short sleeve shirt went over it, with the same dark leather belt circling her waist to attach her sword sheathe to. She'd kept her hair to a long red braid down her back, but she'd woven a spiked strap throughout it, to give anyone who would resort to hair-pulling in a fight a nasty surprise. She used to cut it to shoulder-length, but Red had always preferred her hair long, so she'd stopped cutting it short for him. She absolutely refused to wear "normal" business attire for a woman – a business suit or skirt and high heels were not at all useful in any kind of fighting situation. She also despised high heels as a general rule.

She'd changed the procedure for reaching members of the task force. _Now_ the procedure included a required identity check at the front desk. If someone's identity couldn't be verified, but they had urgent or relevant information, they could leave a message with the front desk and either leave the information there or wait for an interview – _after _being checked for weapons – with one of the investigators and with Wren herself being present to act as a bodyguard. All interviews would be taped so that they could be later sent on to L, or filmed live for him if Watari was present and could set everything up for the interview.

She'd also convinced the task force to move the location of the meetings. She'd located a floor near the top of the headquarters that had only one entrance. She'd gotten them to agree to clear out the floor for meetings. There was one conference room at the end of the hallway, which had a door that faced towards the only door that provided access to the floor. The floor was cleared out before meetings, and Wren checked the entire hallway before ushering everyone into the room. During the meeting, she stood by the door to the room, which had a small window in it that allowed her to see down the hallway. In this way, she could see anyone that entered the floor during the meetings. With her enhanced hearing, she could _hear_ the door to the floor being opened due to a careful application of a chemical to partially break down the lubricant used on the hinges. No matter how carefully that door was opened, it would creak and she would be alerted. She made sure there were closed blinds on every window on the floor. She'd _wanted_ the entire building to keep the blinds closed, to prevent a sniper from targeting the task force during a meeting, but the police had rebelled against that suggestion. She had to be content with keeping the blinds in all the rooms on the specified floor closed at all times, so no one outside would know exactly when the meetings were going on and what room they were in.

_No one but me seems to realize that Kira isn't the only thing we need to worry about. It's regular, common-seeming people that we need to guard against too,_ she thought. _There are already plenty of Kira fanatics out there. I wouldn't be surprised if they start their own cult if Kira continues to kill for any length of time. _She shuddered. _ There's nothing more dangerous than a religious fanatic – their eager to go, and even more excited if they can take an "unbeliever" or two down with them. If Kira ever made contact with one of these hypothetical cult members he'd probably even _encourage_ them to kill off his trackers!_ Now that was a truly frightening thought.

It wasn't enough, but it was a start. She'd like to get all of the police using fake ID's and such to help protect their identities, but she was going to wait on that suggestion – some of the officers were already being surly about the changes she'd already made. _One step at a time._

She never felt alive anymore, except when she was exercising her craft.

Wren carefully made her way down the hallway, checking in each of the empty rooms, before ushering everyone into the conference room and taking up her post at the door. Surprisingly, as Watari passed her by to enter the room, he murmured a nearly inaudible "Good work, Miss Wren," to her.

She smiled at the man as she closed the door and stood at attention.

Watari began to set up his computer in the back of the room as everyone else got settled.

At the beginning of the meeting yesterday, they had quickly gone over the most current statistics of people killed by Kira and people calling in reporting to know or be Kira. They had brought her up to speed on the observations made about the times of death of criminals that pointed to the fact that Kira could be a student then as well.

The start of the meeting today didn't go as smoothly as Wren would have hoped, however. There was a general air of nervousness in the room as some of the officers gathered around Chief Yagami's desk, talking quietly with one another.

"WHAT!," the Chief suddenly exclaimed. "I don't believe this. Another twenty three victims between yesterday and today?"

"They're dying every hour, on the hour," another officer chimed in.

"Considering this pattern has been going on for two weekdays, this does seem to punch some holes in the theory that the culprit's a student…" another stated.

_They're missing the important things here,_ Wren thought, shocked. _The fact that the pattern had altered and the _targets_ had altered. All of the targets yesterday and today were inmates, people whose deaths and times of death would be noted quickly and accurately. The most important thing here is the fact that the pattern didn't change until the police had begun to suspect that Kira might be a student._ She looked around the room and back towards Watari, suddenly realizing that this also made her the most likely suspect for a possible leak of information. _I'm going to need to talk to L and Watari after the meeting today…_ she sighed to herself.

She drew breath, about to point out the conclusion she'd drawn about a leak of information, but L chimed in first.

The robotic altered voice emerged from the laptop speakers, sounding annoyed. "You're missing the point." Wren shut her mouth and waited to hear what L was up to.

"It does appear less likely now that Kira is a student. But that's not the message he's sending by doing this. Ask yourselves, 'Why every hour? And why are all these victims in prisons, where they are sure to be discovered immediately? Why not other criminals, like before?' I believe that Kira is telling us that not only can he kill from a distance, but he can also control the time of death." L paused as shocked murmurs arose from the policemen in the room.

**L's gaze was drawn to the red-haired woman standing guard at the door. She was already looking at the computer, her gaze hard. She switched her eyes to looking directly at the camera, as if she was making eye contact with him from halfway across town, and nodded slowly, once, before turning her attention back to the meeting.**

** L's eyes widened. **_**Did she draw the same conclusions I did about an information leak among the police officers?**__**She must know that she's the first person that I would suspect. **_**Is it possible that what he'd just seen was a moment of understanding, of this young woman thinking the same thing he'd thought and agreeing with him? **_**No, that's just not likely. She may have just been trying to show support of the theory that I voiced to the police. I doubt she followed my reasoning so far as to draw the same conclusions I have, **_**he thought. The leak hadn't become obvious until she joined the task force, so she was the number one suspect in this case. He bit his thumb, pondering just what to do about this.**

The meeting continued on until the officers decided it was time to break for lunch. As everyone began leaving the room, Wren walked over to Watari and the still-open laptop. "You have my permission to do whatever you deem necessary to investigate me," she stated simply, under her breath so that no one but Watari and L could hear her. Watari nodded silently to her to show that he'd heard and understood.

**L had been walking away from his computer at the time. He halted, stunned. He hadn't needed her permission to begin to investigate her, but as he gazed at her through his computer screen, he found that he respected her – both for the quick deductions she'd obviously come to and the fact that she simply accepted that she was suspect and given her permission for him to use logic to rule her out and clear her name. She didn't try to come over and insist on her innocence with no facts to back up the claim. **_**So she did know what I was thinking earlier.**_** He paused. **_**Astounding.**_

__**He crouched before the computer, hugging his knees to his chest and thinking. **_**She seems to have a clear conscience, if she's that willing to go along with whatever method I decide to use to investigate her… of course, that could be a ruse. But, it's a point in her favor either way – she's not afraid of anything I have to throw at her, apparently. **_**He was shocked at her manner. Secretly, he was also somewhat pleased that this woman had been able to keep up with his line of reasoning, and had had the sense to keep quiet about what she'd figured out. It would make it easier for him to initiate his plan to investigate the entire police force to figure out where, exactly, the leak was.**

** He would ponder about just what to do about this intelligent woman later. He turned his mind to the logistics of his plan.**

**0000000000000000000**

As the investigators filed back in from lunch, Wren noticed three officers who were not taking their seats. She turned her eyes to them as soon as everyone else was seated and ready, expecting some sort of drama.

"What's this about?" the Chief exclaimed angrily as the men placed three pieces of paper on his desk – one for each of them.

"With all due respect, Chief, we're resigning," one of the men stated. "We demand that you assign us to a different case, otherwise you can have our badges right here and now."

Wren's eyes glinted angrily from her position at the doorway. _The cowards,_ she thought. _No one ever said it would be easy or safe to track down and catch Kira. In fact, I pointedly _told_ them two days ago it wouldn't be. Why ignore that fact until NOW?_

"But why, you're good cops?" The Chief seemed too shocked at this turn of events to do more than gape at the men in front of him.

"Isn't it clear? It's because we value our lives, sir. If what L said earlier is true, Kira has some special power that allows him to kill people indirectly without being present."

Another one of the men chimed in, "And if I were Kira, sir, I would want to get rid of the people trying to catch me – he knows it'll be a death sentence when he gets caught!"

The first man began again, getting more agitated with every word he spat out, "We all sat here and watched when L decided to pull that media stunt and challenge Kira to kill him. It was all very impressive at the time, but then again L never had to show his face or reveal his name for that matter. I'm sure you recall L asking us to determine how the identities of the victims were made public, and specifically whether the photos of the victims were available to the public prior to their deaths. That _woman_," his voice dripped with scorn, and Wren's eyes glinted dangerously. But she kept her temper in check. Barely.

"That _woman_ even mentioned this as part of her reasoning for 'improving our security,'" he slammed his hands down on the desk. "Well, they were right. They were both right – every single one of the victim's names and photos were broadcast to the Japanese public and _then they died!_ Unlike _someone_ we know," his glance towards the back of the room was pointed, "We're out there investigating this case wearing police ID's with our names and photos on them. Anybody with a computer can find out who _we_ are. We don't have the luxury of having a completely unknown name or an unknown face like those three." He gestured with an arm, taking in Wren and the computer in the back of the room with Watari seated behind it. "We don't _hide_ our faces; we're out in the open!"

The third man put a hand on his companion's shoulder, trying to calm him down a little bit. "Sir, the truth is, we could be killed at any time, and there's nothing that _girl_ or L could do to prevent it."

The talkative one had apparently gotten himself back under control. He shook off his friend's hand and stated in a calmer voice, "For those reasons we refuse to continue working on this case. Excuse us, Chief."

Chief Yagami sputtered as the men began walking towards the door. As the men began walking out, her eyes flashed with bright gold sparks. She resisted the urge to put her foot out and trip one of the men, restraining herself to nothing but an intimidating glare, which the men refused to meet.

**L had been expecting something like this, and wasn't overly surprised. He was a little disappointed but he simply silently thanked the men for the work they **_**had**_** done and moved on. Not everyone was as driven as he was. Not everyone was willing to risk so much for what might be thought of as so little gain. He looked at the woman at the door, giving the men an intimidating death glare, and almost chuckled to himself, smiling.**

** He stopped, shocked. The smile dropped off his face. What was it he found so amusing, here? He gently nibbled the end of his thumb. He would have to figure this out at a later time.**

** The point was, not everyone felt an overwhelming sense of Justice like he did. Or such an overwhelming sense of Duty, like that woman, or like Chief Yagami himself. His eyes were drawn to Wren, standing at the door and visibly restraining her anger at the men, and then to the Chief at his desk in his suit and tie, still looking shocked.**

** He shrugged to himself and brought his mind back to more important matters.**

**000000000000000000000000 **

The man on the screen was very businesslike in appearance. He was addressing the world-famous detective L, after all, and had to look his best. "We brought the FBI to Japan four days ago. As requested, we are now gathering intelligence on the police and the woman known as 'Wren.'"

"And this is the complete list?" L said, speaking through his voice-altering microphone.

"Yes."

_There are one hundred and forty-one people in the police force, and one woman working with them who is not a member of the force, who have access to the classified information regarding the investigation. I'm sure that somewhere in this list of police officers and the people closest to them – and people working alongside them – we will find our suspect._ L looked from his computer to the papers in his hands, a determined light in his eyes.

**000000000000000000000000**

The next day at the beginning of the meeting, before Watari had even had time to set up his computer, the phone rang on Chief Yagami's desk. His face was serious as he hung up the phone. "Another six inmates died yesterday night from heart attacks. Three of them, however, exhibited bizarre behavior before they died – one drew a pentagram on the wall with his own blood, another wrote a letter before his death that doesn't seem to be a will or anything meaningful, and another escaped from his cell to make it to the prison staff bathrooms before dying." As the officers began discussing this amongst themselves, Watari switched on his laptop and contacted L quickly, sending him the pertinent information.

Wren stared into space, thinking hard. She was as puzzled as everyone else about these new occurrences.

**L quickly read over the letter, which was basically a rant about how he was afraid that Kira might find him and kills him. **_**Hmm… it's believable that our victim might have been genuinely afraid and wrote this but… We know that Kira can control the time of death. What if he could also determine the actions in the moments leading up to death?**_ __**He looked at the police officers, mumbling amongst themselves and eventually over to the silent Wren, standing at attention near the doorway, as usual. She seemed to be deep in thought about something.**

The police officers were all full of questions. "What does this mean?" being one of the foremost. "Were these criminals really so frightened by Kira as to resort to panicking? Would there be riots? Was there some kind of strange cult that made strange symbols in their own blood?" These and other pointless questions fluttered around Wren as she remained deep in thought.

"Miss Wren." The mechanically altered voice of L snapped her out of her deliberations. "Would you like to share what you are thinking about so… intently?" As one, all of the police officers turned to look at her. She looked around, nervous at their combined scrutiny.

"Well, L… I'm not exactly sure. The only think I'm certain about is that there is a certain question that needs to be answered. I'd like to know _why_ only three out of _six_ victims that happened in the same timeframe exhibited such strange symptoms." She stated.

**She'd made a good point. **_**What if… Kira was testing something?**_

__"Chief," L began, "we can't release details of these men's deaths to the media. As far as they're concerned, these are just heart attacks. I have reason to believe that Kira was performing some kind of test using these criminals, and if that is the case, we'd only be giving him the results if this information is leaked to the public."

"Right, I understand," the Chief replied.

_But if there's an information leak, won't Kira just find out the information on his own anyway? _Wren thought to herself. _I suppose there's no stopping that at this point, _she sighed. _The police sure do love their files and files of information_, she thought wryly. _At least if the information isn't made public, the person leaking it could slip up. At the _very_ least, I suppose it might make it more difficult to obtain the results of this 'test' of his. _

"So now he's experimenting on his victims?"

"How horrible."

Chief Yagami interrupted the comments of his officers, sounding angry and frustrated. "He's playing with people's lives, as if this were just a game. It's unforgivable."

**L was contemplating the new events. **_**If Kira is really using criminals as test subjects, what is he trying to **_**achieve?**

Wren's emerald eyes were cold as she thought about L's theory. _Using people as lab rats… It's disgusting, _she thought. _What does he gain from it, though? _She looked out the window on the door and down the hallway, looking worried.

_**If Kira was using these criminals as experiments, there's a good chance that he's about to start something. If he makes his move now, there's a good chance that the FBI will notice someone acting suspiciously among the people I've asked them to investigate. But… perhaps he has a different goal in mind altogether? Could the pentagram or the letter be some kind of message?**_

__**L took another look at the letter that the convict had written and gasped. The letter was written in Japanese, in vertical columns. But the first row of letters read "L, do you know."**

_** Is this it? **_**L thought.**

**00000000000000000000000**

Wren sighed to herself as she left the police headquarters that evening. As she walked back to her hotel room, she noticed that the same man from the past couple days was following her. _As if I wouldn't be able to figure out that an amateur like that was tailing me, _she shook her head. _I learned how to spot and fend off assassins as a key skill during my body guarding jobs. Spotting someone like this is easy as anything. _She shrugged to herself and kept walking, ignoring the man as she had for the past couple of days. _Ah well, he's not doing any harm… and I did give my permission for L to investigate me however he felt he needed to. I just wish he'd used someone a little better… _

She made it to her hotel and saw the man turn to leave as the door closed behind her.

_Well, these next couple days are going to be tough. I wonder if any more officers are going to get cold feet. I need to be ready for anything. There's no point in worrying about the person tagging me – he's there to investigate, and he's not a direct threat to me. He's not even someone I should concern myself with; since I know I'm innocent. He's going to tag along behind me until L is convinced of that as well, and nothing I do will change it._ She made it to her room and changed, crawling under the covers and lying with her hands behind her head staring at the ceiling. After a few minutes she snapped out of her trance and reached over to turn out the light.

_Better get some rest._

_ I'll probably need it, I bet it'll be a tough week._

If only she knew how true that statement was.


	5. 4 Detective

**Well, now my computer is hopefully fixed and I won't have to stay up 'til 4am again dealing with freezing and crashes. Let's hope.**

**I don't own Death Note, its storyline, or its characters or anything else pertaining to it.**

**Once more, thank you to the people who've left me reviews, and thank you to those who have added my brain-child to their favorites. **

**Enjoy,**

**-E**

**P.S. I had to repost this, after realizing that somewhere along the way a couple of paragraphs got scrambled in their order and didn't make sense… Woops.**

Chapter 4 - Detective

**The next day, L's computer chimed, indicating that Watari wished to speak with him. He turned towards the glow of his computer screen. "L, there's been another victim. This time he left what appears to be a suicide note."**

** "Please, send it to me."**

** L's eyes narrowed and he brought his thumb to his mouth as he looked at the note. The first thing he checked was to see if a hidden message was obvious in the same place as it had been on the last message – using only the top row of Japanese characters, instead of reading through the columns. **

** "L, did you know?" the first message had said.**

** The top row of this letter read "Gods of death."**

** L was puzzled. **_**What is Kira trying to say? Is he merely trying to taunt me? Or is he trying to tell me that gods of death exist?**_

__**"Watari, please tell the police to monitor prison populations closely for the next few days. Kira may try to use other 'suicide notes' to communicate with us."**

** "Understood."**

**00000000000000000000000**

A few days later, Wren was walking back to her own hotel room. It was mid-afternoon. She was still being tailed by an amateur, although it seemed like her current shadow was a different person than the first one had been.

_I would have thought L would be satisfied by now,_ she thought, sighing to herself as she turned down a side street. _ Instead, it seems that he's just decided that his first investigator was incompetent or something. Ah, well. _She shrugged to herself and looked up at the blue sky. _He's not doing any harm, even if having a constant watcher does make the hair on the back of my neck stand on end. _

She'd just about made it to her hotel at this point. Before she walked in the front door, she turned around, trying to catch a glimpse of the new investigator that had been tasked with shadowing her.

Suddenly she heard a gasp of pain coming from very close by. She sprinted towards the sound, skidding around the corner of the hotel building just in time to see her 'shadow' grab at his chest and collapse.

She caught him before his head hit the ground. Feeling sick to her stomach, she called the police, telling them to send an ambulance. She gently laid the man's body down and felt for a pulse in his wrist, afraid that she already knew what she would find.

The man was already dead.

_Somehow, Kira must have gotten wind of whatever methods and people L was using to investigate the leak in police information…_ She had to assume that any and all agents sent to investigate were just as dead as the poor man who'd been following her.

She gestured at the doctors coming down the alley towards her, beckoning them over. As they took control of the man's body, she stared out the alley at nothing in particular. The dust motes dancing in the air that were visible in the sunlight seemed to catch her attention. _What now, L? What will be your next move?_

_ The police aren't going to like it when they find out about your investigation of them…_

**0000000000000000000**

** "L, you have a call from the director of the FBI." Watari's voice interrupted his contemplations. He moved in front of his computer and crouched down in front of it on the floor. **

** "Thank you, Watari. Please put him through."**

** "L, it's me. I've got a report in front of me right now stating that all of our agents in Japan are dead; all twelve died of heart attacks. I can only assume that Kira is behind this. Look, I'm sorry but… It's already decided. We're calling off our investigation."**

** L's face was still as he listened to the man. Soon after the director of the FBI hung up, Watari again contacted L, this time from the police headquarters where he had just finished setting up the laptop to begin the day's meeting.**

** "Chief Yagami is on the line."**

** The Chief's face appeared in the center of the screen, as if he was standing directly in front of the computer camera. The other officers were visible at the edges of the screen – they were all watching their Chief. Wren stood off to one side, just visible in her customary position near the doorway.**

"L, I just got off the line with the director of the FBI. According to him, you arranged for the FBI to come to Japan and investigate everyone here associated with the task force!'

"Yes, I did," L replied calmly.

"So, how do you explain this? Are we now suspects in our own investigation?" Chief Yagami was getting angrier with every word. He seemed almost on the verge of losing control.

"I felt that it was necessary to uncover Kira's identity." The voice coming through the computer again sounded unperturbed.

"I cannot accept that! I find it unbelievable that you would spy on us – the very people working with you on this case!"

Wren gazed over at the irate man, her demeanor perfectly calm. After all, she _had_ given her permission to L to investigate her. _I can't believe the man is making such a fuss over this, _she thought. _The Chief is certainly full of pride today._

Kairne had always told her that "Honor is how others see you, while pride is how you see yourself." He'd told her to live with honor, and to try to keep her pride in check, even when it was justified. Pride could cloud your judgment and prevent you from seeing the obvious. _Being unwilling or unable to admit when the facts point to your own people being suspicious is foolish._

She'd admitted it to herself as soon as she'd come under suspicion. Instead of ranting and raving, she simply accepted the fact that she looked suspicious and moved on. She'd known that a detective like L would need hard facts, not some kind of emotional argument, to clear her name. Wren hadn't had any problem with that.

L simply wouldn't be the best if he was easy to sway with arguments that had no backing but a person's wounded pride.

Her gaze roamed the room, as she listened to the mumbled comments of the other investigators.

"Hear that?"

"I knew all along we couldn't trust that guy."

"We probably can't trust her either." That last was directed her way, accompanied by an angry glare. She shrugged and ignored it. Their suspicions of her didn't particularly matter to her – only the suspicious of the brain behind the case mattered. She wanted to know how L was going to deal with this development.

"Kira killed those FBI agents, didn't he?"

"It's obvious that he'll kill anyone who gets in his way, whether or not they're criminals."

She almost rolled her eyes, listening to them parrot what she'd stated weeks ago.

From the onset of the case, she'd considered L the leader, the primary principle. Even though she wasn't guarding him herself, he was the brains behind the operation. While she held a responsibility to the rest of the people here to do her best to improve their safety, they were not her primary concern. If she wanted to think completely coldly about the situation, the investigation could continue on without most of them. That didn't stop her from wanting to protect as many as she could, but she knew if the choice came up to protect L or to protect the average officers, she would save L.

The simple reason behind this being that she didn't think they would be able to bring Kira in without L. He was the only one with the capability to develop strategies that would work to put that monster behind bars.

_Many of these people are just looking for an excuse to leave the case,_ she thought as she examined the other people in the room. She could see fear in the eyes of many of the police officers - fear that had been there since the first three officers had quit. Many of them were simply too ashamed or worried about their jobs to quit in the same way, however. _We'd to better without those who don't truly want to be here. We need people who have enough of a sense of duty and justice to see this through, no matter what the cost._ If the police bailed, she planned to offer her services to Watari after the meeting. The police investigating on their own would be of little threat to Kira, and she believed that he would not target them for that reason. He may decide to run them in circles for fun, but there was no reason for him to kill police officers if they couldn't catch him.

As the officers were discussing their distrust of L, more information continued to come into the headquarters, despite the dissent within the ranks.

**Watari contacted L once more, interrupting the detective who was listening in to the officer's debates. "We have another victim – a note was found at the scene." **

** L's eyes snapped to the screen.**

** "L, did you know?"**

** "Gods of death"**

** "Love apples."**

_**Damn you, Kira.**_

**000000000000000000000000000**

Later that evening, the Chief called his officers to order, deciding it was time to put an end to the endless needling before things turned nasty. He could already see numerous people throwing nasty looks at Watari and at the red haired woman. She had moved closer to the table where Watari sat, a cautious attention in the way she moved, as if she was ready to make a break for it at any second if she had to. The Chief wondered if she would protect the shrouded man in the back of the room if she'd had to fight her way out. But that was irrelevant, as he would make sure that it would never come to that. He despised the idea of allies pitting themselves against each other.

He raised his voice to be heard above the general noise in the room. As he began to speak, all the other officers fell immediately silent in respect. "We now know that Kira does not only target criminals. He'll kill anyone who opposes him. It's quite possible that, despite the best efforts of others in assisting us, we may all be killed by Kira."

_Not like I didn't tell you all that _before. Wren hid her exasperation with the men in the room, however, due to the fact that she was keenly aware of how afraid many of them were. She could sense the fear almost as if it were a palpable thing – just as something had told her that the man Watari was trustworthy the moment she'd met him, she could sense and feel the harsh emotions of the officers here. She'd long ago come to accept that she could feel such things when emotions ran high, and simply used it to her advantage whenever she could. She could limit the extra sense to a point, to keep strong feelings from affecting her. She was doing that now, refusing to be subject to the fear of the others.

_If you can't work beyond your fear, you ought to admit it and get out of the way of those… Those who have less to lose, _she thought. Her eyes darkened a little. Honestly, she felt some sympathy for many of the men.

"Think of your own lives, your families, and all the others you'd be leaving behind," the Chief continued. "If anyone wants to leave this investigation, now is the time. You won't be punished of demoted if you choose not to stay, you have my word."

"But if you're not absolutely sure, we don't need you. You have to be able to fight against Kira, even if that means making the ultimate sacrifice. That is all."

Chief Yagami met Wren's eyes, obviously thinking that she would be one to leave. She held his gaze with hers, calmly. _I've faced death many times before, sir. It doesn't scare me. It's… living… that scares me._

Living alone, with nothing but her sense of duty to hold her to this life, for year after year frightened her. She could already see the years stretching out before her young self – years of isolation. She feared that the day would come that she wouldn't be strong enough to hold to her duty or to her Self. At least, if she went down fighting a monster like Kira, her death would mean something. No, she wasn't the least bit afraid to die.

She was impressed by the Chief's actions, however. His determination to see the case through himself had been obvious throughout the speech he'd made, and showed that the man also possessed a keen sense of honor to counterbalance the pride he's made such a show of earlier. As she locked eyes with the man, she felt her sense of respect for him growing considerably. In his eyes, she could glimpse the qualities that had enabled this man to reach the position he held today.

As the mutters of the other investigators rose around her, she looked in the Chiefs eyes, unafraid. "There's no question. I'm staying. I will assist L even if the police decide they no longer wish to be involved," she told the man who was looking at her so hard. A bit of challenge flashed through her gaze, daring him to try and send her away, and also daring him to see if he would stay himself, to see if he would see this through.

**L was shocked by this woman's determination to continue with the investigation. She seemed young for this work. **_**Doesn't she have her whole life ahead of her?**_** He thought. He knew that she believed it her duty to protect those involved in the investigation, but he also wondered **_**why**_** such a goal would take precedence with her over other, more normal things for someone her age. **_**Perhaps… perhaps we have something in common. How strange.**_** He turned his head to the side, looking at her through his camera. It was almost as if she, too, had nothing to lose.**

As Yagami held her eyes, something in her told her the hunt was good – this man would stay. He would face down the monster as well. The two of them put aside their differences in that moment and decided to work as a team to bring down Kira. She nodded to the man, equal to equal. Yagami looked satisfied, and broke eye contact. He turned back to his men, who were his responsibility, and listened to them as they debated.

**00000000000000000000**

A few hours later, only eight people were left in the room. Watari was in the back with his laptop, and Wren was near him. Five officers were left, and the Chief remained in his desk at the head of the room.

"I'm grateful to see that there are even this many of you willing to risk your lives to face evil," the Chief stated simply.

The mechanical voice of L emerged from the back of the room as everyone turned to look at the computer. "The fact that you've chosen to stay means you all have a strong sense of justice… or duty." Wren could almost feel the scrutiny of the detective, but she shrugged it off as her imagination. "I trust all of you."

"Hold on a second," one of the officers – Aizawa, Wren thought his name was – began. "L just said that he's decided to trust us now, but honestly, what reason do we have to trust him?"

Wren suddenly came to a conclusion. A small smile played across her lips as she gazed at the computer. _Clever, L. I almost would've thought that you planned this all out to weed out those who wouldn't stay true to course under adversity. Perhaps you did. In which case, I'm impressed by your stratagems once more._

"Look, L," Aizawa continued, "All of us have agreed to put our lives at risk to bring Kira to justice. So I hope you understand what this means. We're really sticking our necks out, here."

Another man whose name she couldn't remember chimed in, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "But _you_ never have to show your face, do you? _You_ just give the orders."

Aizawa picked the thread of the conversation back up after his companion's interruption. "I don't see how you can expect us to work alongside you under those conditions."

The Chief finally decided it was time for him to put in a word as well. "L, if all of us are going to work together on this investigation, and if you truly meant what you said about trusting the seven of us, could you come here so we can all meet in person?"

_It'd be better for us to go to him, _Wren thought. _In fact, I bet that's what he'll end up suggesting if he agrees to show his face to us. _Even with some of the police officers tending to miss what was right in front of their faces at times, she thought it wouldn't take much for them to figure out who L had to be if a new person started showing up at police headquarters and getting involved with the Kira taskforce – or what was _left _of the taskforce. Even if he came with his face hidden, as Watari did, he would be in a great amount of danger and he would be a target when he was coming and going from the police plaza, if he held meetings here with them, face-to-face.

Wren looked into the camera and shrugged, a tiny smile dancing around the edge of her lips. She knew where this was going.

**L looked at the woman who appeared to be shrugging at him, mildly annoyed. It seemed that she and he had come to similar conclusions once again. She never seemed to mind finding ways to share that she was on to him. His annoyance turned to amusement as he realized that while she had guessed his game, the others were still gazing at the computer, looking angry.**

** Watari smiled as he saw the look and the shrug from the woman in the corner, directed at the computer. **_**Indeed**_**, he thought, **_**it will be good for my foster-son to realize that not everyone is too slow to keep up with him.**__**It was time that he met someone else that could challenge him.**_

** L cleared his throat and reached for his microphone.**

"The thought had already crossed my mind, Chief Yagami. After all, I did say that I trusted all of you." Wren thought that the altered voice sounded amused, and she wanted to chuckle herself. She restrained the urge, however, not wanting the police to think she was laughing at them. _Check, L,_ she thought to herself, as if this whole thing was a giant game of chess.

Watari turned the computer around, exposing a screen with a typed message from L.

Please keep what is about to happen a secret between the nine of us.

I would like to meet the seven of you, whom I trust, as soon as possible.

But before that, I would like all of you to go outside the police building and decide once more if you trust me or not.

The words on the screen were in Japanese, so it took Wren a little bit longer to puzzle through them – she wasn't as fluent in written Japanese as she was in the spoken language. She nodded when she had finished reading, and looked around the room at the stunned looks on the rest of the investigators faces. Silently, all of the men began to file out of the room.

As she passed Watari, she couldn't resist grinning at the disguised man, glad that things were finally beginning to progress.

"Where do I sign up?" she asked cheerfully. She was delighted to hear a chuckle from the man as she passed him to follow the officers. She needed to keep a lookout for them on the street, after all.

**000000000000000000000000**

Wren stood off to the side of the men as they discussed their loyalties. They seemed to believe it likely that L would send a stand-in or a proxy of some kind instead of really meeting them face-to-face.

_I'd have believed that the man was a stand in if he had come here to meet you,_ she thought. _But I believe that L is going to honor this offer that he made. _She was eager to meet the man and see what such a brilliant detective was like. She already deeply admired the man for his mind and his skills – after all, strategy and tactics weren't only used on the battlefield!

The youngest officer – a man named Matsuda, she believed – chimed in to the discussion, proclaiming that he trusted L. A tall officer named Mogi agreed with him.

Then Chief Yagami chimed in. "From the beginning, he's been very upfront about needing the assistance of the police on this case. Perhaps… he's been waiting for this to happen all along." The others all looked shocked, and Wren felt her respect for the man increasing yet again. He was obviously an excellent cop – and he was the only one of the others to catch on to L's plan, as she had. "From the beginning of the investigation, there were numerous officers who didn't trust L. Task force members were resigning left and right. Following that, classified information was leaked, so I'm not surprised he didn't trust us."

Matsuda seemed excited as he caught on. "In other words, he was waiting for the task force to be narrowed down to the people he could trust, and to do that, he needed to weed out anyone who wasn't totally committed!"

The sarcastic man whose name eluded her growled. "If we're working with that guy I'm leaving the task force!" he finally exclaimed. He turned to walk back inside the building. "You don't have to worry – I won't try to follow you. I'm not interested in finding L."

The remaining men were all in agreement – they were ready to go.

**000000000000000000000**

The group went back inside to inform Watari of their decision. The man gave them a number to call, once they were outside of the police station. Wren checked to make sure there was no one within hearing distance before they dialed the number they were given. L's modified voice came through the speakers of Wren's cell phone.

"I'm staying in a suite at the Teito hotel at the moment. From this moment on, I will be changing hotels every few days. I want you to think of these hotel rooms as the defacto headquarters of the investigation. If this arrangement is acceptable to all of you, then split into two groups and stagger your arrival so that you come in at least thirty minutes apart." Wren nodded at this, her eyes thoughtful. _Sensible ideas, all of them._ "Please arrange it so that you're all here at midnight."

**000000000000000000000000**

** L was looking out a window at the dark city skyline. **_**Kira, it seems we're moving closer to each other in equal steps. It's only a matter of time before we collide. I'll do this. I'm ready to show **_**my**_** face. I'll make my first public appearance as L… If you ever manage to find out about these secret meetings, I'm sure you'd feel the compelled to move in. Bring it on!**_

**000000000000000000000000**

Wren and the investigators stood outside the door to the suite that L had specified. Wren looked at the others, smiling slightly at the picture they made – everyone in suits except the young woman in baggy pants and a tunic-like t-shirt. She was sure that she stood out, being the only one of the group who refused to dress in business wear. Wren was in the lead, in case it was a trap of some sort. The Chief was next to her, and the others were lined up behind them. Yagami knocked on the door.

A low voice answered from within the room. "It's unlocked, please, let yourselves in."

The Chief opened the door and Wren slipped inside, a hand on her sword. She took a deep breath and listened closely, relaxing. She could smell the cologne that she associated with Watari throughout the room, so she knew they were in the right place. The only other person in the apartment was standing in front of her. She motioned the others inside before turning to look at the man standing before them.

He was tall and thin and pale. He was dressed in a long-sleeved white t-shirt and jeans. Apparently, he must have thought that dressing up was just as pointless as she believed it to be. _The important thing here is the investigation itself, not how you dress to get it done!_ His black hair was a mess, and he had dark bags under his grey eyes. A small smile curved Wren's lips when she noticed that he, too, was barefoot.

He stood on one foot, using the other to scratch his leg in what was obviously a nervous gesture. His hands were in his pockets, and he stood with a slouch. Slouching like that, he was eye-to-eye with Wren, so she assumed that he would be at least half a head taller than her if he was standing up straight. Her gaze travelled to his completely stoic face. He couldn't be more than one or two years older than she was.

_Well, this will certainly throw those old men in suits for a loop. _Her eyes sparkled and she was – barely – able to keep herself from grinning at the man in front of her.

He looked at her and then at the others coming through the door. Then his grey eyes travelled back to her and Chief Yagami.

"I am L," he stated simply.


	6. 5 Interview

**I don't own Death Note, its characters, its storyline, or anything involving it.**

**So today I got an anonymous review telling me the following;**

"What will the police and L think of this dangerous woman?"

I'm not even going to read on to see what "L" will think of "this dangerous woman."

In fact, I don't even have to read on to be able to tell that L will find her irrsistable and then start wildly making out with her on his bed, right after proposing to her and knocking that sucker up.

This story is crappy and you should feel crappy too.

**I'd like to address the person who read a summary and didn't even bother to read the story before reviewing. I started this story partly out of frustration after reading one too many stories where L meets woman, immediately falls for her, somehow becomes almost normal ('fixing' himself due to his love for said beautiful woman), and immediately starts making out/sexing with said woman. I don't know why someone would search for a story listed under a "romance" heading if they didn't want to see the character at least eventually fall in love. Also, this person can't spell.**

**I may change the summary if it sucks that bad, I wasn't really trying very hard when I made it – I just wanted to get chapter 1 up, to let the story speak for itself.**

**I would like to say that I think L immediately finding someone irresistible and starting to wildly make out with her seems **_**highly**_** out of character to me. Again, echoing my own frustrations when I started making this story. The whole reason that L is such an appealing character to me is because he is such a strange person. He's believable – with amazing faults as well as amazing strengths. Having my own history with emotional trauma, I also believe that I identify with him as a character because of how he behaves – something obviously happened to him that affected him deeply, and his interactions with others reflect that throughout the Death Note series. I don't intend for him to immediately fall head over heels for anyone, as to me that is both OOC and unbelievable, even in a real-life sense. That shit just doesn't happen. I don't believe in love at first sight. Sometimes I'm not even sure I believe in love, but I'd like to retain hope that it's out there.**

**Also, I'd like to once again state that I believe it is incredibly stupid to review a story you didn't even bother to read. Being confident enough in my writing style, (I know that my writing, at the very least, is not the "Rebecca Black" of the fanfiction world) however, I'd like to point out that trolls that live on the internet and try to be anonymous is their rage-ca-pades are retarded and need to get a life. :D**

**Judging by the fact that I have numerous followers on this story and numerous people adding it to favorites already, I can assume that at least SOME people like it, which is enough for me. Also, I, personally, enjoy getting the story out of my head and onto paper.**

**I do realize that, thus far, the story follows very closely the storyline in the anime, and that is going to change some now that all the characters are actually in the picture. Not totally change, but some. Personally, I think the prologue and chapter 1 were probably the best chapters I've written so far, partially because they had very little to do with the storyline of the anime and were entirely of my own devising.**

**That being said… It's time for the next chapter. And the trolls can try their trolling somewhere else – I've lived on the internet for years as a gamer.**

**Thank you to the people who post **_**useful, insightful, and thought-provoking**_** reviews. I enjoy your feedback, as it allows me to improve my writing; I will take what I learn here and use it again if I ever decide to send any of the other stories in my head (that are NOT fanfictions) to a publisher, so this is good practice for me. Thank you to those who have added my story to favorites or even who have simply checked out my story in passing.**

**I hope you enjoy.**

**-E**

**P.S. I apologize for the extra-long rant.**

**000000000000000000000000**

Chapter 5 – Interview

Wren's amused gaze switched to the men beside her. _You know, if you leave your mouth hanging open too long, something will fly in there… _Chief Yagami was the first to recover his poise. He cleared his throat and fished in his coat pocket for a moment, finally bringing out his police ID badge.

"I am police Chief Yagami," he introduced himself. Each of the others snapped out of their shock to follow his lead.

Wren rolled her eyes and resisted the urge to knock her hang against her forehead. _These men really want to do nothing but make my job more difficult, don't they?_

L's gaze traveled from the Chief to each investigator in turn as they introduced themselves. When everyone else was done, he turned back to the beginning of the line to look at her as well. Wren decided to see if she could crack the detective's stoicism. She stepped to the side and swept into an extravagant bow, flinging her arms out to either side of her like outstretched wings. She looked up from that position and smiled slightly, arching an eyebrow at the man before her. "'Wren' is all anyone is going to get from me," she said simply, hoping that the man who deduced so much from so little would figure out that she was also saying that _she_ was also aware that giving away real names to strangers was a risk.

L simply nodded at her pleasantly, his face unchanging. He turned his gaze back to the police Chief as the man began apologizing for their lateness.

L held up one arm, his thumb up and his first finger pointing out in the classic child's depiction of a 'gun.' "BANG!"

"What the hell was _that_?" Aizawa exclaimed, seemingly already peeved by the detective's attitude, looks, and casual dress.

L growled softly in frustration, but his face remained completely unchanging. _The man is awfully good at hiding his emotions on his face at least. His body betrays some of his nervousness – it has to be nerve racking, showing your face for the first time in public after working from the shadows for so long, _Wren thought. Well, that was one way to hide how you really felt. She preferred to simply hide how she felt behind a mask of "acceptable" emotions. People were less likely to crack your mask that way. If people thought you were cheerful and happy, they rarely bothered to look beyond to the real emotions behind your eyes. _To each his own, I suppose_. Secretly she wondered what, precisely, L wanted to hide so badly.

"If I were Kira, you'd be dead, Mr. Soichiro Yagami, Chief of the NPA." L's surprisingly low voice was flavored with just a hint of amusement. "Kira needs a face and a name to commit murder," he continued, "Please, do not give out your names so carelessly." He turned to walk into the next room in his hotel suite. "Instead, let's value our lives."

"Please, come this way. Also, please turn off all your cell phones, handhelds, and other communications devices and leave them on that table," he said, gesturing to a table next to the entryway. She heard Matsuda whispering behind her. Apparently, his comment made Aizawa decide to speak up, seemingly offended at the detective's request. _Why did you come if you're just going to try picking a fight with the detective every step of the way? _Why_ does there have to be an easily offended complainer in every group?_ Wren was exasperated by the man's attitude. Silently, she turned her phone off and left it on the table, as the Chief calmed Aizawa's offended ego and asked him to follow L's instructions.

Politely, L answered Aizawa's accusation, "No, I just find such devices distracting. I can't stand when people's phones are ringing while I'm trying to talk." He climbed into an armchair at the head of a coffee table surrounded by other chairs, perching in a crouched position with his knees drawn up to his chest. "I'd like to begin by saying that no one will be allowed to take notes on anything that occurs during these meetings. That means when we leave headquarters, any information we need is committed to memory. Please, make yourselves comfortable."

Wren pulled a nearby chair that had no armrests from another table and sat in it cross-legged, setting her sword sheathe in the middle of her legs and leaning on it. She made sure to position herself so she had a good view of the door they came in, just in case. She'd also took a seat in one of the spaces nearest the detective, as he was the choicest target in the group. Aizawa gave her a disdainful look before switching his unbelieving gaze to the detective seated nearby. The others traded glances and then moved to comply with the detective's wishes.

Wren was the most comfortable where she could get in between the others and any intruders.

**L was aware of the gaze of each of the investigators. He was still slightly nervous about showing his face, but he knew intellectually it had been the necessary choice for furthering the Kira investigation. As he looked around the room at each of the people that he was finally meeting face to face, he wondered what was going through their minds. As they all sat at the coffee table, he noticed that everyone was staring at him. He shrugged and did his best to ignore their stares. Then he noticed that the red-haired woman was no longer looking at him.**

**Her emerald gaze seemed to turn inward for a moment as if she remembered something, her eyes unfocusing momentarily.** **Then her gaze flicked to him for a moment before settling on the door they'd just entered. **_**I could almost be grateful to her for not examining him like a circus sideshow attraction. And for not trying to turn every suggestion I've made into an argument.**_

Wren was making a mental note to go out tomorrow or the next day; her energy level was flagging. _I haven't had time to even stop by a park in the past two weeks. I can't keep functioning at my full capability if I deprive myself of a "recharge." _She brought her mind back to the present after a moment.

L poured himself a cup of coffee from the tray sitting on the table in front of him, taking a sip of it and making a face at the taste. It was the first evidence of any kind of expression she'd seen on the man's face. The officers continued to stare at him, apparently fascinated, repulsed, confused by, and curious about his mannerisms in turns. L made a dissatisfied sound, putting the cup down and reaching for the sugar dish. Wren wondered if he was uncomfortable by the frankly rude stares of the others, and decided to keep her eyes focused on the door for the moment. She saw no reason to be rude just because someone was a little eccentric. After all, she wore a sword around. She could hear the sound of sugar cubes dropping into the man's drink as the man added what had to be half the supply of sugar. She glimpsed him picking up a spoon so delicately by the very end of the handle that she thought the man would drop it. She was mildly surprised the spoon didn't stand in the drink as she listened to him stirring it carefully.

Once L began talking, she concentrated on committing what he said to memory. The first order of business was apparently to inform the team of a new alias that L wanted them to use – Ryuzaki. The detective then proceeded to knock down Matsuda's suggestion of keeping criminals safe by not publicizing them using data concerning the kind of personality that Kira possessed. Some of these were things that Wren had already pointed out – like the fact that those who got in Kira's way would become targets as well. "You see, Kira is childish and hates to lose," L explained.

"How could you know that?" the Chief asked.

"Well, I'm also childish and hate to lose. That's how I know." L – Ryuzaki – began to elaborate on that statement as Wren hid her frustration. _It's not like I didn't tell them the exact same things. They're just listening NOW because it's coming from Him and not me. _She'd long ago learned that things like this were a fact of life for a woman mercenary – no matter her reputation, her employers wouldn't always listen to anything she said. This sometimes led to dangerous situations that could have been avoided if her advice had been heeded by her employers. It was one of the reasons she'd always been careful of whom she signed a contract with.

L started to suggest using the media to put out a fake message about a large number of FBI agents in Japan when Wren finally spoke up, interrupting the other investigators excited exclamations and assumptions of how such a plan would work out.

"Ryuzaki," she began softly, "Isn't it very likely that Kira could easily see through that particular bluff? If he knows about the FBI and whom they were investigating, isn't he also likely to know that the FBI has pulled out of Japan? That particular call was made in front of the entire investigation team, after all, and you have no way of being certain if the information was leaked to Kira. This was _before_ the team was narrowed down, after all."

L's grey eyes turned to her as she spoke. "Hmm… Yes, Miss Wren, that is certainly possible. It's also possible that he could figure out that such a move isn't likely to be made by the FBI. However, it's worth at least attempting. On that note, let me also share the rest of my thoughts on the Kira case."

Wren brought her own eyes back to the detective, looking away from the doorway. "Kira works alone," he stated, brining his thumb up to his lip and turning his grey eyes downward in thought as he spoke. "He had access to all our classified information. We know he needs a name and a face to kill and that he can control the time of death. He can also, to some extent, control his victim's actions before death. We already know _that_ much. Please keep all of that in mind and listen carefully to what I have to say next."

L pulled a marker from his pocket and slid the coffee tray out of the way, beginning to write on the table. Wren slid closer so that she could see what he was writing. Ryuzaki began to draw out his theory of the timeline involved and how he'd narrowed down the number of suspects based on who was being investigated during that particular timeline. He had no doubt that Kira was one of the people who were being investigated by the FBI between the 14th and 19th of December. He then handed everyone the files containing the information on the people who were under suspicion.

The investigators all started to get excited as they talked over the information that L had given them. A determined spark glinted in Wren's eyes as she looked at the others, feeling herself getting caught up in their enthusiasm. _Let the hunt begin…_

**L wondered what the woman was thinking. She had a steely expression on her face as she gazed at the others, one full of determination. **_**She had been willing to speak up.**_** That had stood out to him – he was used to working with people who simply followed his orders, rather than debating them or suggesting weak points in his strategies. **_**I'll have to start to take advantage of this, **_**he decided, pleased that at least one of the investigators could prove to be a useful ally.**

Wren's gaze travelled to the Chief, who looked troubled.

"Ryuzaki. Pertaining to what you said earlier, does the fact that you've shown your face mean that you've lost? By just being here, are you admitting defeat to Kira?" He said.

_A good point, _Wren thought. Her emerald gaze echoed the same question as her eyes turned to Ryuzaki. _The old man has already shown that he has the will, the duty, and the honor to see this through. _Ever since that moment of understanding between the two of them, she'd begun viewing the Chief in a different light – no longer was he simply a man who couldn't look past her sex to see her strengths. Now he was someone she thought would be a strong ally. She'd sensed that the Chief's views of her had also changed when he realized that she wasn't joking around in being here – that she'd truly meant what she'd said about her duty to protect people. _Will the young one be strong enough to hunt alongside us, or will he falter at this first defeat? Is L's will strong enough to do this?_

The man's stoic demeanor changed before their eyes. Suddenly he showed a determination that rivaled their own. "That's right. By showing my face to you now and by sacrificing the lives of the 12 FBI agents, I have lost the battle."

Wren wondered if those deaths weighed heavier on him than he was letting on.

"But I'm not going to lose the war," he stated boldly, his voice deathly serious. Wren shivered, something in her reacting to that statement that was delivered with such a primal determination.

"This is the first time that I've ever put my life on the line. I want to show Kira that we're all willing to risk our lives if that's what it takes." Ryuzaki's gaze travelled around the room, starting with Yagami, and ending up locked in Wren's emerald gaze. Grey eyes met green and suddenly the emotionless man laughed quietly and smiled. Wren's eyes widened as her heart seemed to skip a beat, some unknown feeling surfacing and hiding within her at the sight of that smile. But she refused to break gazes first.

"And together, we'll show Kira that Justice will prevail, no matter what."

As the others exclaimed excitedly, Wren and Chief Yagami looked at the man in front of them; two faces of Duty looking at the face of Justice.

Wren held the man's stare until he looked away, refusing to be the first. When he finally looked away, a chill of fear ran up her spine that she refused to show. _What was THAT?_, she wondered. It wasn't the same as when she sensed someone's trustworthiness, like she had felt with Kairne and Watari. That sense didn't tend to work anyway with people who hid their emotions like L. It wasn't an emotion that she'd sensed outwardly, either. It had been as if something inside her, hiding beneath layers of her own protections, had broken free for a moment before being suppressed again. She directed her gaze to the floor, her eyes unfocusing as she thought. _I don't know._

**L continued to smile slightly to himself as he thought about what had just happened. He knew that this team of people was with him, now. He knew that they, too, believed in similar values to his own. He knew that, for now, they would stop at almost nothing to capture Kira. That could change later, but for now they were with him. **

** He wondered at the measuring look in Wren's gaze when he'd held her eyes. Most people preferred not to meet his eyes at all – he supposed that he seemed too odd for most people to want to have much to do with him. It had never bothered him before now; after all, he had Watari.**

"Very well," L interrupted the celebration of the others. "I would like to interview each of you one at a time, so that I can determine whether or not Kira himself is among us. Chief Yagami, if you would please come this way…"

**0000000000000000000000000**

L had contacted Watari before the officers had set out for the hotel. He'd wanted tracers built and ID's with fake names forged for the entire team before the next day. Creating things had ever been Watari's specialty.

He'd left the items to be made for young Miss Wren for last. Her fake ID was to be a simple driver's license, since she wasn't a part of the police force and Watari had believed that she wouldn't want to impersonate one anyway. _She's just like Red was. He had been so determined to do everything he could within the law – perhaps because his profession so often toed the line of what was legal. _Watari chuckled to himself, lost in memories of his old friend during the early years of their association.

_I had never met an honorable mercenary or bodyguard before that man. _Red had first met Watari on a job; the man had actually been hired to protect the famous inventor at the time. Quillish Whammy had been prepared to put up with a cold-blooded killer. Instead his hired guard had been a man cut from a different cloth altogether. _It's a good thing Kairne had no temper to speak of. I was barely civil to him at first!_

But then Red had saved his live, going above and beyond what was necessary to fulfill his contract, at the cost of great risk to his own life. Watari had been stunned by the man's dedication to his duty. _His foster-daughter is just the same._

He was looking forward to finally getting to meet Miss Wren face-to-face. He'd thought she was quite an intelligent and determined young woman, and he believed it would be a pleasure to finally have another person to share the responsibility of the security around L with – especially someone trained by his old friend Red.

_This turn of events might even be good for L, _he thought. _My foster-son has lived so long in the shadows that he has forgotten how to see the light of day. It gets lonely forever living in the night._ Watari knew this all too well, from what he had experienced in his later years and from what Kairne had told him of his life and profession.

Quillish turned his focus back to what he was working on. He'd made belts with tracers embedded in them for each of the other team members, but he remembered from his time at the police meetings that Wren's belt also served to hold the sheathe for her weapon. He'd decided after careful thought to make her tracer into a bracelet. He'd considered a necklace, but he was almost certain that she wouldn't be able to wear it for fear that someone would try to use it to choke her in a fight. A bracelet however, couldn't be used against her as easily. It was a simple gold-colored band with a garnet set in it; the garnet was to be the trigger, similar to the belts that the men wore.

The old man smiled as he thought about the red-haired young woman as he got back to his work.

**0000000000000000000000**

"Miss Wren, this way please." L's voice broke through her stupor as she looked up to see the man's retreating back and waving arm beckoning her into the next room.

She'd been doing her best not to fall asleep; many of the other investigators were also tired, but she was downright drained at this point. She hadn't been near anything greener than a patch of grass or the single trees lining the sidewalks for too long. _I think… I need to go for a run today_. That was the reoccurring thought in her mind as she followed the man tiredly into the next room.

The room appeared to be some sort of study, occupied with L's computer and more hard copies of files that had been organized in meticulous stacks. _He does seem the type to have a ridiculously organized workspace, _she thought as she looked around.

As L took a "seat" – if you could call it that – in one of the chairs, she stumbled over to the other, sinking into it in the same cross-legged position she had used in the other room. This time, she simply laid her weapon across her lap and rested her elbows on her knees to prop her head up.

L eyed her for a moment. Wren had the feeling that he wasn't used to people meeting his gaze and perversely decided that she'd refuse to look away, eyeing him right back. Once more, he broke eye contact first, his bare feet fidgeting in the chair. His gaze dropped to the sword in her lap. "Couldn't you have left that in the other room?" he asked.

"The other officers have their weapons, why shouldn't I have mine," she shot back.

L shrugged and signed. Then he reached over to one of the stacks of files that was nearby, selecting the one he wanted and opening it up.

"Wren. Name: unknown. Age: 22. Home Location: United States. Professions: Bodyguard, mercenary, strategist, tactician, arms and weapons specialist. Trainer: Kairne Wallace, alias of Red, who was apparently also an acquaintance of Watari's," he began.

Wren shrugged, refusing to waste the energy on being irritated by this particular tactic.

"You do of course realize that Watari's knowledge of your teacher weighed heavily on the decision about your involvement in this case?" he asked her.

She didn't answer directly, choosing to answer the unspoken question – how did her teacher know Watari – instead. "I was surprised myself. I don't think I know Watari, and Red introduced me to almost all of his contacts that were still living when he was alive. I didn't know they knew each other either."

_**Interesting. I'll have to ask Watari about that myself.**_

__"So let's get down to business. I want to know your reasons for staying with the investigation. I was privileged to be present to overhear your remark to the police Chief when he confronted you about staying on the case, and I want to know more." L stated plainly.

"There was simply no question about it Ryuzaki. I didn't put myself on the line to start working with the police on this case in the first place to quit so easily. And I didn't volunteer for this job with illusions of it being safe. I wasn't frightened off because I've been fully aware of the dangers inherent from the beginning. That _is_, after all, my _profession._" She was careful to use the exact same inflection on that word that he'd used when simply reading off facts about her earlier.

"Ah, yes, of course." The man seemed unperturbed. "Your deductions that you reached earlier in the case on your own have often coincided with my own." He bit his thumb gently and looked down. "It's actually quite remarkable, how to-the-point your suggestions and statements tend to be."

"Thank you. I'm not sure if that's actually a compliment," she pointed out, "but I'm going to take it as one anyway." She paused for a moment before continuing, "I was determined from the start to help catch this monster and I will." She looked at him for a moment. "Frankly, you impressed me with your strategies; I was 'privileged to be present' for your show with that television broadcast at the start of the investigation. It was remarkable. And how you used the leak in information to your advantage to narrow down the number of investigators to the people who would stick it out was also quite impressive."

L seemed mildly pleased by the compliments and the way in which she'd turned his own words around to deliver them. _Does he ever feel anything strongly besides his sense of Justice? Or does he simply hold everything apart from himself? I suppose it's fair enough; I do the same thing myself, after all. My sense of Duty is the strongest thing in me._

"Now, you, Wren, are aware of the dangers of this case. Knowing that, what would really drive you to come to Japan to join in what could well be an investigation that signs your own death warrant? Isn't there something else you'd rather be doing? Something else you wanted to do with your life?"

"I could ask you the same thing. You aren't older than me by more than a year or two. Don't you want to go off and settle down and raise freakishly smart little children for the rest of your days." She glared at him, angry at him for implying that she should be off doing that sort of thing. "I know that if Kairne were alive, he'd have been right there beside me the day I showed up in the police plaza to convince you and the police to let me work on the investigation team. He truly believed that he could protect everyone in this world and strived towards such an end his entire life. He's not on this world anymore, but I know that he would have wanted me to join in this – I'm all that's left to carry on his will and his legacy. This is what I'm good at, L. Sorry – Ryuzaki. It's what I've spent my whole life training for. I feel… _right_… when I'm doing the things that Red taught me. Even more so when I'm using that training for a cause I know that he'd find worthy."

L nodded, accepting her explanation. He continued to question her for over an hour, supplying a few tests of her capabilities as well. She had the feeling that the rest of the interview was mostly the detective trying to figure out what she was capable of, rather than trying to determine if she was Kira.

Despite that fact, the mental grilling session was fast consuming what remained of her energy. The morning sunrise was showing its first rays through the window by the time L was done. She had been the last of the investigators to be interviewed.

As the two of them emerged from the room, the officers turned to look at L as one, waiting for his verdict. "You will be pleased to know that I have determined that Kira is not among us."

The officers let out an audible collective sigh.

"Watari is on his way now," L announced.

Wren sat up and turned around to see the face of the man as she heard the door to the suite open. She smiled as soon as she caught sight of the older man. Again, that feeling that she could trust the man warmed her as she grinned at him. The man smiled and winked at her before schooling his face into a serious expression.

Watari presented the investigators with fake IDs – police badges for the others and a driver's license for Wren. 'Kasai Wallace' she read silently to herself. She was glad that Watari had chosen to let her use Kairne's last name. He also passed out belts with tracers in them to the others and a bracelet with a tracer in it to her. She thanked him and admired the workmanship on the item – it was one of the best disguised such devices she'd ever seen.

L then dismissed them for a break, sending Aizawa to the station to collect any new information that had been received there.

**0000000000000000000000**

Wren stumbled over the doorway as she and the other investigators left the hotel. Chief Yagami gave her a concerned look and patted her on the shoulder gruffly. "Go get some rest," he told her roughly. Wren simply nodded silently.

**0000000000000000000000**

L watched through the window as the others left the hotel, lost in his thoughts about what he had learned of each of them.

He admired both the Chief and Wren; the two of them seemed the most determined of the investigators. They also both saw and accepted the risks of being here – though he suspected that their acceptances were for different reasons.

He had the feeling that the man named Matsuda was still full of the youthful exuberance that causes young men to believe that they are immortal. Aizawa and Ukita both seemed to be purposefully ignoring the dangers and hiding their fears. He could deal with that, though L did wish that Aizawa's denial of his fear didn't cause Aizawa to be quite so disagreeable and sarcastic about the things L asked of him. Mogi seemed to see the danger to the others, believing that it could be mostly avoided or controlled by safety precautions – the man had faith in the system if nothing else.

The Chief… The Chief accepted and feared death. He saw the risks with open eyes, and accepted them as a man willing to fight against the monster that was Kira. His sense of honor and duty both worked to keep his resolve strong.

L wasn't positive about Wren. She too, saw the risks with open eyes. Anyone in her profession wouldn't last as long or be as successful as she was without being able to see hidden risks. She didn't seem to have the over-confidence that Matsuda exhibited either, however. She also obviously felt, like the Chief, that it was her duty to be here and oppose Kira. But there seemed to be something else there that was bothering L. An underlying… lack of fear.

_That's it. She lacks the fear of death. She sees the risks and accepts them, and she seeks to minimalize them. She doesn't seem to be _seeking_ death. But she doesn't seem to fear it at all. So why would someone so young _not_ fear death? Where is her belief that she has life yet to live, things yet to do? What is holding her to this _world?He was shocked at this revelation about the woman.

_It's almost…_ he reached out and touched his fingertips to the window, his haunted gaze locked on his own reflection in the window.

_It's almost as if she, too, feels that she has nothing to lose._


	7. 6 Running

**I just checked. Nope, still don't own Death Note, its story, or any of its characters. Darn.**

**There are songs used in this chapter. The names of the original writers will be quoted along with whatever version I was listening to/thinking of when writing the portions that contain them at the end of the chapter, in order, so that the names of the songs don't give away anything important. (I'm not sure they would, but just in case.)**

**Thanks to those who read my story, the fact that you all enjoy it is what keeps me writing it.**

**-E**

Chapter 6 – Running

After saying farewell to the others and walking out of their sight, Wren staggered over to a bench beside the sidewalk and considered her options. _I've only got this partial day, at best, to go and recharge. There's no point in going to a park again – I'd need to spend multiple days there to get back up to full strength. _She looked at the back of her hand and smiled self-deprecatingly. _I should never have let myself get this drained. Foolish._

Before now, she'd been careful to take a couple hours every two or three days to spend in a park or other natural-ish area. It had been fairly easy – she just dressed in some shorts and went running. Putting on jogging clothes and shoes to blend in properly was a small price to pay. The other officers didn't question a fighter's need to get some exercise, and running through a park was a perfectly normal way of going about it. Due to the fact that she hadn't gone "running" in weeks, however, she was too far gone for a short stop in the park to get her back up to speed. _There's no choice. I need to get out of town,_ she finally admitted to herself. She struggled to her feet and headed in the direction of her hotel to grab a few things, making plans as she went.

**0000000000000000000000000**

Wren gazed quietly out of the window of the bullet train she'd boarded, watching the city buildings pass by. She was letting her mind wander, thinking back to the first time she'd discovered her strange weakness.

**000000000**

She was 10. Wren had reached a point in her training where Red had seen that she could handle herself well in her usual environment, and decided to take her training up a notch.

"Lass, it's time for ye to see a bit o' the rest o' the world," he'd said, cheerfully. They'd set out the next day, beginning a time in Wren's life that she would remember most fondly for years to come.

Red and Wren had travelled all over the world, exploring different types of terrain. She'd loved seeing each new place, each area with new things to learn. She remembered sparring with her beloved foster father on beaches of wet sand or smooth pebbles, the tide pulling at her feet and trying to trip her in the waves. He'd taught her to move and fight in the close confines of a bamboo forest somewhere in China. They'd run together across endless plains of grasses, maneuvered through a swamp filled with mud that would suck their legs down, and waded through pools of water with their weapons held over their heads. Red had even taught her to stalk silently over a forest floor covered in crackling dry leaves in the mountains of Appalachia. Every place they had gone, Kairne had taught her to move properly in. He'd taught her the dangers of each area, how the terrain affected groups of troops, and how to survive on her own skill in such places. Wren had delighted in each new place and loved the time she spent with her mentor during this part of her training.

Those forests in the mountains had been her favorite place in the entire world. Even when she was young, she had loved those beautiful American mountains – she loved the way the fog rose around them in the mornings, like the sky had come down to hide the valleys in between them. The deep green of the endless forests in spring and summer had lightened her young heart. The sight of snow covering the fall leaves – the white crystals drifting down to contrast with the brightly colored autumn leaves – had enchanted her. She'd end up later making her own home there, eventually.

And then Kairne had brought her to a city. The place was teeming with people, close packed. It had truly been a 'concrete jungle.'

Each of those wild places had been full of energy, something Wren had not been able to see. She'd been able to feel it, flowing around her in endless harmony. Since she'd always been able to sense that, she'd thought nothing of it, believing that such a sense was normal. But the energies in the city had been disjointed and weak. They didn't flow strong like they had in the wild places, and tended to pool softly around areas like landscaped school campuses, large yards, and parks. She hadn't paid much attention to that lack of energy except to notice that phenomenon, and note that the currents of the pooling energies were much more still than the wild counterparts – much like the gentle flowing of a still pond when compared to the rush of a river or the pounding of the ocean. The 'water' was still present, but it didn't have the same underlying current that pushed it along.

Wren had begun strong, soaking up Kairne's lessons in street-fighting, riot control, moving through the masses of people. There was an art to hiding in plain sight in a city, and he'd taught her that as well. She'd even begun learning how to spot places that assassins and snipers might hide on faraway buildings before the weakness had overtaken her.

Wren and Red had been in the city for about a month when she succumbed. For a week or two before that, Wren had been sleeping more and more and looking more and more drained as she went about her lessons each day. Red had noted his daughter's exhaustion and simply assumed he'd been pushing her too hard, letting her sleep later each day. Soon, however, he became alarmed at the sheer amount of time she had been sleeping each day and the fact that her tiredness persisted even though she slept more and more.

Wren hadn't been sick – Red had taken her to a doctor and she'd come back with a clean bill of health. Whenever Red asked her what was wrong, she could only tell him that she felt drained. That she was tired.

Finally, two months after they'd arrived in the city, the day had come when Wren hadn't even arisen from her bed. She simply stared tiredly at the ceiling with dark bags under her eyes and asked Red to tell her stories, drifting off in the middle of even her favorites. Kairne had sat on a chair next to her bed, his eyes red-rimmed as he looked at his daughter. He held back his tears until she'd fallen asleep yet again. She awoke one last time that day, in the evening, and held his hand.

"Daddy…" her weak voice had startled him out of a stupor. He lifted his eyes to hers and reached out to her, holding her smaller hand in his. "Daddy… it's so empty here…" That was the last thing she'd said before she fell back into an almost coma-like sleep.

That night, Red spent the entire time staring out the darkened window, thinking. As the dark sky began to lighten, he'd had a thought that startled him out of his mourning. He'd looked at his sleeping daughter, an almost frenzied look in his eyes as he put together some things from the stories he'd gathered over the years.

That morning, he'd packed up all their things and bought them both tickets on the earliest plane out of town. As they touched down back in Ireland that afternoon, he prayed that his idea would work. As soon as he stopped his car in front of their house in the forest, he pulled his daughter out of the passenger seat – she was cocooned in blankets, still sleeping. With her in his arms, he walked into the woods, settling the both of them on a shaded rock that had been warmed by the morning sun. He rested his own back against an outcropping of the rock and settled Wren at his side, leaning against him. Despite his worry, he'd soon fallen asleep.

He woke up feeling his daughter squirming next to him that evening. She struggled out of her blanket-cocoon, and stood up, stretching and looking refreshed. Kairne had had to struggle to keep from crying at the sight. He simply stood up next to her and wrapped his daughter in a tight hug.

When they went back to the city a few weeks later, they'd been careful to spend at least a couple of hours in a park or other natural place every other day. Wren had never again suffered from a similar "sickness."

**00000000**

Under Wren's tired gaze, the buildings of the city shrank to become residential homes and then farms. As the terrain she was watching became more and more natural, she began to go over the events of the past couple of days in her mind.

_Finally meeting L face-to-face… was a surprise. _She'd found the thin, pale man to be fascinating – she had expected someone more like the Chief, perhaps; someone severe, older, dressed up like a businessman. Someone who would probably be prejudiced against a woman in her profession, as Yagami had been in the beginning. Someone who would make her life much more difficult. _Of course, he still may manage to do that._ What she had seen, however, was someone… someone who seemed to be a lot like her. Wren pondered that thought as she gazed out the window of the train, holding the backpack that she had thrown her things in. She hadn't been able to hide her sword inside it, but she had wrapped the sword with a black cloth and tied it to the side of her bag so that it would lie between her back and the pack. That had sufficed for her purposes; it simply looked like the kind of bag that people would use to carry around a camera tripod. If anyone asked, she even had a camera in her pack so she could pretend to be taking pictures of the countryside where she was headed.

_He's near my own age, for one thing. He's also obviously just as successful at what he does as I am at my profession. And he's confident about his occupation, even if he didn't seem to be totally comfortable around people._ She'd noticed that his fidgeting tended to give away more information than his face. She was also sure that, with exposure to the team, he would probably get better and better at controlling that nervousness. _He hides his emotions and thoughts well enough that the average person probably couldn't anticipate him, even if he hasn't had much experience with people in general. _Wren herself had been handling her own clients in the years since Red's death, as well as a few years before that. Besides, you couldn't _protect_ a client if you didn't interact with them at least a little bit!

_L seems to fully trust no one, except perhaps Watari._ There was a difference between trusting someone with a little bit – say, a view of one's face – and trusting someone totally. Wren smiled slightly, fingering the bracelet that Watari had given her as she thought of that notable man. She had genuinely liked Watari – he reminded her so much of her old mentor.

It wasn't Watari's mannerisms or looks that called Red to her mind. Kairne had been a broad-shouldered, Celtic-blooded, redheaded man with white streaks running through his beard and hair. Where Watari had the manner of a born gentleman and an accomplished intellectual, Red had been down-to-earth and very much a coarse mercenary. No, Watari reminded her of Red in the sense that the two men seemed to share a similar ideology – the desire to _act_, to _do_; and by said action, strive to make the world a better place. Neither of the two men were the kind to sit around and do nothing but _talk_ about what was wrong with the world – they were men of action. Maybe the _kinds_ of actions that they used were different, but the reasons and purposes behind the actions were the same.

Her smile faded as her thoughts turned darker. _I could almost be very jealous of L_. He may have been living in the shadows without interacting with humans much, but he still had someone close to him to turn to – someone whom he trusted. L still had a father.

Wren felt tears gathering in her eyes and brushed them away quickly, ruthlessly clamping down on the empty feeling in her heart. She felt her throat tighten with sorrow and refused to acknowledge the emotion. She refused to be seen crying.

As soon as the train reached her station, she grabbed her bag and set off at a ground-eating jog for the woods that she could see at the far side of the town. Quickly, she ran over the concrete roads, aching to have the feeling of dirt and grass under her toes once more. Her control over the emptiness in her soul was slipping with every step she took. She could feel a coldness in her chest that grew with every moment that passed. Her feet sped up of their own accord as she moved through the small community.

The town was far enough from the city that there were actually cultivated fields at the edge of the town, and beyond those fields were trees – an actual wild forest. As her feet hit the dirt path to the edge of one of the fields, she sped up from a lope to a sprint, as if she could outrun the feeling that was choking her. Her sight was blurring as she focused on the green of those trees. Soon, she was at the tree line, and then in the forest itself.

She rushed through the forest, dodging trees and leaping fallen trunks as if she was being followed by a demon – and in a sense she was. She ran from the sorrow and pain, hoping against all hope that she could escape from this feeling that her world was breaking apart.

Finally, the emotion caught up to her. She fell to her knees, gasping painfully for breath. She buried her fingers in the loam beneath her and closed her eyes, feeling the energies of the earth mother around her, surrounding her and reaching out to her. Those energies moved around her as if they were holding her in an embrace. There, at the foot of a giant moss-covered tree, her sorrow overcame her. She felt the hold she'd been trying to hold over her emotions snap – an almost physically painful sensation. Warm tears spilled down her cheeks and fell to the forest floor beneath her as she lost herself to the agony.

**000000000000000000000000**

** L was crouched in front of his computer, his eyes locked on the blips that indicated the locations of each of the team members. More specifically, his eyes were locked on the little blip indicating Miss Wren's location. She had left the city and was literally in the middle of nowhere. He bit his thumb worriedly.**

_**Why is she out there? **_**There were numerous scenarios that the paranoid man could think up explaining her presence that far outside of the city, and most of them indicated grave danger for himself and Watari. **_**She could have sold the tracker to someone else, to hide her movements. She could have thrown it away and someone else could have picked it up. **_**She might have done that, if she'd decided to leave the investigation at this point. **_**She could be meeting with Kira to sell her knowledge to him. She could be betraying us at this exact moment.**_** But wasn't she smart enough to hide her movements better than that; if that's what she was doing? **_**She could be in trouble. Maybe she'd been kidnapped?**_** But if that was the case, why hadn't Watari received a danger signal on his phone? **

** L's eyes travelled over to where Watari was calmly preparing food for them in the kitchen, and then turned back to the screen.**

_**What is going on?**_

** "Watari," he began, "Would you please come have a look at this?"**

** Watari walked over, alerted by a note of nervousness in his protégé's voice, and examined the screen in front of his protégé.**

** "It appears Miss Wren – or at the very least Miss Wren's tracer – has left the city," the man stated calmly.**

** L turned to Watari. "Yes… But why?"**

** Watari was silent for a minute as he thought about the young woman that he had taken such a liking to. He didn't think that she would be the type to desert her duties here. He also didn't believe her to be the type that would betray them. But he had no explanation for this strange behavior. "I'm not sure, Ryuzaki. Would you like me to try calling her to find out?"**

** Wren had told Watari that she usually gave out her pager number to clients, and called them on her phone, which, like his, was untraceable and wouldn't show a callback number. Before she'd left that day, she'd given both Chief Yagami and Watari the number to her actual phone, claiming that using her pager would be an added hassle if there was an emergency that they needed to contact her about.**

** L looked back at the computer screen, fidgeting nervously and nibbling on the end of his thumb more. "I don't believe that is necessary just yet," he finally said, getting a hold of his paranoia. "The investigators were told, after all, to take the rest of the evening off. Let us see if she returns later… and if not, we shall attempt to make contact with her and determine just what she is doing outside the city limits."**

** Watari nodded silently, and looked at the screen once more before returning to his preparations. He silently began to hope that the young woman would return from whatever she was doing soon, and that she had a good explanation for her absence.**

**000000000000000000000**

Wren woke up about an hour after she had cried herself out. Her eyes felt dry, sticky, and puffy. Silently, she took a water bottle out of her pack and used some of the clear liquid to wash the stickiness from her eyes. She sipped a little of what was left once she was done, sitting up and leaning her back against the tree behind her.

She leaned against the moss-covered giant, her eyes staring straight ahead, unfocused. She had a look of concentration on her face, as if she was trying to see something or someone that was not actually fully there. In her mind's eye, the forest around her changed slightly, becoming darker green and more full of moss and ferns. The sun shown down in bright golden rays onto a forest floor covered in emerald green. A laughing man with red hair smiled at her and demonstrated the proper way of holding a sword.

After some time, she blinked, her eyes once again focusing on the present. The vision of the past faded before her and dissipated into mist. She sighed once, deeply, still feeling the sorrow deep within herself. Her lips parted, and she finally began to sing quietly to herself, as she had once sung with Red. This time, however, she was singing a song she'd heard on the radio back home in the United Stated. The words and the haunted sound had struck a chord within her.

"_I tried to kill the pain, but only brought more_

_I lay dying, and I'm pouring crimson regret and betrayal_

_I'm dying, praying_

_Bleeding, and screaming_

_Am I too lost to be saved?_

_Am I too lost?"_

Tears flowed silently down her cheeks as she sang; feeling her emotions pouring out of her through the medium of her low, clear voice.

"_Do you remember me, lost for so long?_

_Will you be on the other side, will you forget me?"_

She knew that Red wouldn't forget her, so long as she remembered who she was, what she was. That didn't stop her from wishing that she could just… cease. She willed her grief to be lessened as she sang, or to at least… separate itself from her enough that she could function. Her loneliness consumed her at her weakest moments, but it was something she refused to show or tell to anyone. She'd only let herself show her true emotions where there was no one there to see.

"_My god, my tourniquet,_

_Return to me salvation,_

_My god, my tourniquet,_

_Return to me salvation._

_My wounds cry for the grave,_

_My soul cries for deliverance,_

_Will I be denied?_

_Christ, tourniquet,_

_My suicide"_

She let her voice trail off quieter and quieter, fading into the silence of the forest. It was as if the world had stopped to listen to her singing. She didn't want pity. She didn't want people to freak out and start talking about counseling and shrinks and suicide hotlines. Just because she didn't _fear_ death didn't mean she actively sought it out. After all, Red had always believed that she would do something amazing with her life. She didn't feel like she'd lived up to his belief in her yet.

Practically speaking, however, she knew that a comfortable retirement wasn't usually something that someone in her profession would ever have to think about. It simply wasn't the norm when someone was duty bound to protect others at _all costs._ She knew that there weren't many people as devoted to duty as she was, but that didn't matter to her. She knew her life was on the line, so long as she continued to do what was necessary. She took a sip from her water bottle and sat silently for a moment before beginning to sing again, using the sound to draw comfort that her tears hadn't brought.

"_If I die young, bury me in satin;_

_Lay me down on a bed of roses,_

_Sink me in the river at dawn;_

_Send me away with the words of a love song_

_The sharp knife of a short life,_

_I've had just enough time."_

She figured there wouldn't be any people at her funeral anyway, when she finally did pass. She supposed that being buried in a river would be the way to go. Maybe having her ashes scattered there would suffice. It would be a nice, simple ceremony that no one would attend but the priest. After all, she had no one left in this world.

But she needed to finish what she'd started here first. This Kira case was important. The flow of tears was slowing as she contemplated the others working with her on the case. Seeing their determination helped to renew her own. Most of all, she admired the Chief, Watari, and L. Those three truly were admirable men who _were_ ready to put their lives on the line to catch that killer. And it was her job to keep them as safe as she could. They needed to save the world from a monster that had somehow developed a god's power. A man whose sense of justice had somehow been twisted, somehow come to lack any evidence of the duty that men like the Chief felt towards the people that they protected. Kira seemed to be trying to improve the world, but he didn't do it because it was necessary or his duty or for justice. He did it to show off his power.

Wren took a deep breath, her tears having stopped and looked into the canopy above her, trying to see the golden light of the sun through the green leaves.

"_All around me are familiar faces,_

_Worn out places, worn out faces;_

_Bright and early for the daily races,_

_Going nowhere, going nowhere;_

_And the tears are filling up their glasses,_

_No expression, no expression;_

_Hide my head I want to drown my sorrow,_

_No tomorrow, no tomorrow."_

_I find it kinda funny,_

_I find it kinda sad,_

_The dreams in which I'm dying are the best I've ever had_

_I find it hard to tell you_

'_Cause I find it hard to take_

_When people run in circles it's a very, very mad world."_

And it was her duty to help those men change the world for the better.

Her energy was replenished now, by the time she'd spent in the woods. Wren got to her feet and brushed off her clothes, looking around. She silently took a moment to once again don the emotional mask she normally wore. She hid her pain behind her determination to do her duty. She hid her loneliness behind a mask of contentedness. She hid her sadness behind a smiling façade.

She picked up her pack and began to walk slowly back the way she had come – back to the train. Back to the city. Back to the investigation. Back to her Duty.

Back to protect the investigators, the Chief, Watari, and, most importantly, L.

**0000000000000000000000000000**

**Watari let out a sigh of relief as he noticed that Wren's tracer seemed to be moving back towards the city. He looked over at L, who was standing at the window, looking out at the sun that was setting behind the buildings of the city. **

** "Ryuzaki, it seems Miss Wren is once more headed back our way."**

** L nodded to Watari, but didn't speak, continuing to stare off into the distance.**

** He would have to interrogate her once more and find out what she'd been doing. Perhaps it had simply been her idea of a little vacation for her evening off. **

**Or perhaps there was a viper hidden in their midst.**

**000000000000000000000000000**

**Song 1: Tourniquet – Evanescence. The version I was listening to was an acoustic cover that was posted on youtube by Kelsey94231, and it's very beautiful.**

**Song 2: If I Die Young – The Band Perry.**

**Song 3 – Mad World – Tears for Fears. The original version was done by this band; the cover that I was listening to was done by Alex Parks.**


	8. 7 Accusations

**I don't own Death Note. But SOPA thinks I'm trying to steal it.**

**Forget you SOPA.**

**Snowboarding when you have writer's block fixes everything and helps you organize the ideas that you write down at night in the moments before you drift off to bed, lest you forget them. Yay snowboarding!**

**Thanks once again to all those who continue to read my story. You have no idea how much I appreciate all of you.**

**-E**

**P.S. I'd love opinions on this chapter. Was it too melodramatic? Too much? Anyone seem overly OOC? I'd love to know, as I'm striving to keep everyone as in character as possible!**

**00000000000000000**

Chapter 7 – Accusations

That night, it began to snow. Wren gazed out the window of her hotel room as the white crystals fell through the air. Her throat tried to close for a moment as she gazed at the blackness between the flecks of white.

**00000000000000000**

The next morning, Wren left her hotel and arrived at L's to find that the others were already there; some of them had apparently returned late the previous evening and spent the night. She found them going over the videos and data of the FBI agents that had been recently killed by Kira.

As she walked in the room beside Watari, L turned from the screen he was examining. Wren met his gaze questioningly, wondering what was going on. _What's with the silence in this room?_

"Miss Wren… If you would please come with me for a moment?" L got up from his perch on the couch and walked towards the room next to the one set up as a workspace.

The other investigators looked haggard and exhausted. They exchanged confused glances with one another at L's request, a couple of them looking almost dazed from lack of sleep. Wren caught Chief Yagami's gaze and shrugged, indicating to him that she had no idea what was going on either. She could hear the men dropping behind her and Watari inquiring if they needed anything as she turned to head towards the door that L had disappeared behind.

**000000000000000000**

_**She doesn't seem to be feeling very guilty. **_**L pondered this as he headed to the next room. **_**That could be because she's very practiced at hiding her feelings, or it could be that she feels she has nothing to be guilty for. And the latter instance can be interpreted in different ways – what if she supports Kira, and believes us to be doing wrong in trying to stop him?**_** Ruthlessly, he ignored the voice in his head that was trying to point out her sincerity when she had first approached the team to join them. The voice that tried to remind him of Wren's conviction that Kira wasn't merely a criminal, but a monster. **

**This was supposedly the dining room of the suite – there was a set of hard backed chairs around a table in the room. L frowned slightly at the sight of the uncomfortable chairs before settling himself in one, adopting his customary crouch. His eyes followed Wren as she paced into the room behind him. He glanced at her sword, knowing that she kept other weapons on her person as well. **_**If she had wanted me dead, there are easier ways for her to do it than selling me out to Kira. Unless she wanted money from him? But we've had no indication that Kira could be rich enough to buy her off…**_

**L's head cocked to the side as he bit his thumb, pondering facts that didn't seem to add up about this woman.**

**Wren cleared her throat, breaking his train of thought. He looked across the table at her, wondering how long she'd been waiting. It couldn't have been too long. It was irrelevant in any case.**

"**Miss Wren," he began. "You are, of course aware that the bracelet Watari fashioned for you is a tracer." His tone of voice made the statement something of a question, which Wren apparently chose to answer.**

"**I am."**

"**The purpose of the tracer was to allow us to monitor the activities of the investigators, as well as to show us where they were located in the event of an emergency."**

"**Yes."**

_**The woman seems determined to be obstinate. Perhaps she truly believes that whatever she was doing yesterday, it wasn't anything wrong? Very well, I'll have to be more direct.**_** "Yesterday afternoon, after the investigators were dismissed, I believe the others expected you to head to your hotel and rest, due to the state you were in when you left. Your tracer indicated that, instead, you left the city. Why?" His eyes almost seemed human for once as he looked at her accusingly.**

**She blushed. L was surprised. The woman had always seemed so confident – due in part to her utter belief in her own competence, he suspected. Watari had once told him that he came across in the same way at times when he was working on a case. It also distanced her from the other investigators at times. **_**Perhaps they see her confidence and competence as cockiness? Perhaps they are threatened by a woman that is so… so abominably sure of herself? **_**He didn't know. He shrugged and forced his thoughts back to the task at hand. **_**Why would she blush? Is she ashamed of something?**_

"**I did leave the town," she admitted. "I needed to rest… away from the city."**

**L stared at her. Did she really think he would simply accept such a weak excuse? "And why could you not take your rest in your hotel room?"**

"**Because I don't really like cities in general." Her eyes darted to the side as she said this, indicating to L that she wasn't telling the truth – or at least, wasn't telling the **_**whole**_** truth. He waited for more.**

"**I prefer the countryside. I feel… smothered in a city," she continued, seeing that he wouldn't accept it if she didn't elaborate at least some. "Besides, we were to have the afternoon off, were we not? I didn't know that my movements were to be confined to the city alone." He was astonished to see that she seemed to be getting angry with him.**

"**I would think that the city has enough in it to suffice to your needs," he replied. "I do not understand why you would not ask leave before heading out into the countryside to gawk." **

**Now an angry flush rippled across her freckled cheeks. "Am I to request leave to piss now too?" Her voice was rising in irritation.**

**L decided that this needed to stop before it became some sort of altercation. He hated altercations. "I've decided that, for the time being, I would like you to move your things here, where I can monitor your activities more effectively, personally."**

**Her mouth dropped open. "Are you… confining me to your hotel suite?"**

"**That was the idea."**

"**That's **_**ridiculous.**_** If I had left to sell you off to someone, don't you think I'm bright enough that I would have left my tracer in my hotel room? You would never have known anything was different from what you expected then – you said yourself that everyone expected me to go home and rest!" With every word, she grew more animated. He was astonished once more by her deductive capabilities – she'd immediately grasped just what he'd been wondering about. "And if I was selling information," she continued, rising to her feet, "I certainly wouldn't have had to come back this morning – I would have already been paid! I could have simply told them what hotel you were at and the suite number and washed my hands of everything, if that was my intention! Ryuzaki, I'm not **_**dumb.**_** If I had something to hide, I could **_**damn**_** well have hid it better than going off with my tracer on to advertise my movements directly to you! I kept it with me **_**because **_**I have nothing to hide and it was safer to keep it with me than leaving it in the hotel room!"**

**L was stunned and he had no idea how to deal with this woman. She had agreed so readily to allowing him to have her investigated last time. Surely, this was only an extension of the last time? **_**Now that her freedom seems threatened, she's lashing out**_**, a part of his mind reasoned. The rest of his mind was searching for a way to get out of this predicament before she struck him.**

**Luckily, she was distracted at that moment by a knock on the door to the room. "Please enter," L called, glad for the reprieve.**

**Watari walked in the door and took in the scene before him – L worriedly shifting in his chair opposite the obviously irate woman, who was standing on her feet with her hands balled into fists at her side, scowling as she tried to control her temper. He closed the door behind him and came to take one of the other empty seats at the table.**

"**A moment, Miss Wren?" he said, gently.**

**She simply nodded and visibly reigned in her temper, apparently trusting the man to bring some semblance of an acceptable accord to the situation.**

**Watari looked at L. "L, you wish to monitor Miss Wren's activities once more, to **_**ensure**_** that there is nothing… strange going on," he stated. "I don't think you or I believe it's overly **_**likely**_** that Miss Wren is a traitor in our midst, but you want to be certain." L nodded to this statement, nibbling on his thumb once more. "After yesterday, this is reasonable. You agree, Miss Wren?" Watari looked over at the woman.**

**An angry flush still graced her cheeks, but she was in control of herself once more and thinking more logically. "Yes, I suppose I can see where that suspicion could come from. However, confining me to a single hotel suite… is simply not acceptable!" Her eyes darted around the room nervously. "I'd go crazy in a week cooped up in here all the time!"**

**Watari nodded. "That is also a reasonable point. Not everyone is as used to living in a confined area as Ryuzaki is. And also, you **_**are **_**a fighter and bodyguard. There is no weight room in this hotel and no way for you to get exercise beyond working out in one of the rooms, which would be confining and difficult," he pointed out, knowing well the needs of someone like his old friend Red. He was right in assuming that Wren's level of activity would need to be similar. Once more he looked at L. **

**L could see the sense in this argument of Watari's as well. He gestured for Watari to continue, indicating that he wished to hear the man out.**

**Watari nodded to L, understanding what the gesture meant. Once more he turned to Wren. "What if Miss Wren came to stay with us, but was permitted to accompany me on my ventures and errands? I would be safer having her watching my back, and I could assess the extent of her bodyguard training. This would also allow **_**me**_** to personally keep her under surveillance at any point where she is not where you can observe her, Ryuzaki. I believe that you trust me enough that my word on the matter would be sufficient? It would also be a simple matter for her to get a chance to exercise as well on these ventures – we could simply stop by a park or track of some sort. I can sit on a bench and look like a congenial old man and feed the pigeons, and she could at least stretch her legs and jog a bit. Neither of us would be very remarkable to the passerby in such an arrangement, making it reasonably safe."**

**Both of the other two people in the room took a moment to think this proposal over. Both of their thoughts on the matter remained hidden behind their eyes as they pondered what he'd proposed in an attempt to reconcile them. L came to a decision first, after weighing his paranoia and need to keep an eye on the woman with his trust of Watari and Watari's good sense. He nodded to Watari silently.**

**Looking across the table at the woman, who still seemed somewhat offended and peeved, he cleared his throat, mimicking what she had done at the beginning of the… meeting.**

**She looked up from her thoughts and glared at him. "This arrangement would be acceptable to me. I trust Watari."**

**She looked to the side and then looked back. "Since you feel the need to suspect me once more, I suppose that this arrangement is acceptable to me as well." Her voice was tight as she spoke. "But I require that these 'exercise days' occur at least every other day, if I'm going to be spending so much time cooped up in a hotel room."**

**Watari nodded and moved to stand up once more. "Very well, we are in agreement then. Shall we get back to the others and let them see that neither of you is bruised nor battered after that little row?" His eyes twinkled with amusement as the two younger people blushed a little.**

"**Yes, lets." L stated as calmly as he could.**

**Somehow, he had the feeling he'd barely avoided being smacked by the woman. He remembered what it felt like to get kicked down the stairs by Naomi Misora all those years ago in LA, when he'd tried to embrace her. He felt no need to repeat the experience of getting bruised by a lady anytime soon.**

**00000000000000000000000**

Wren hid her resentment as they went to join the other investigators. She couldn't believe that L still thought her to be some sort of traitor! She didn't know what ticked her off more – that he thought her a traitor, or that he thought she'd be so dismally _stupid_ about keeping something like that secret! The idea of being stuck in this hotel room for months terrified her – she had no desire to drain herself to the dregs from lack of being _outside_ again! Nor did she want any of the other investigators to find out about her weakness – she didn't know what they would make of it; especially when she finally succumbed to sickness and had to get them to take her to a wooded area to recover. That would start the questions, the looks, the whispers… She shuddered. No, she defiantly didn't want that.

Now that she was thinking more logically again, she could see L's side of the argument. She was, however, very glad of the compromise that Watari had offered. Plus, she liked the older man – it would be a pleasure to get to spend more time with him.

The investigators were all wide eyed as the three of them walked back into the workroom. Wren frowned as she noticed the bags under their eyes. _They all look terrible. _Watari began passing out ice cream to everyone, while L climbed back onto his space on the couch. Apparently the others were reluctant to sit next to the detective. Wren shrugged and went to take that seat, making sure to space herself as far from L as she could on the two-person couch. _If they're living on ice cream and coffee, I'm not too surprised they look as bad as they do. They all need rest, and a good meal._ She put the matter in the back of her mind as she focused on the screen.

"So, what are you currently examining, Ryuzaki?" She asked.

He gestured towards the television screen in front of them, "These are the videos of the FBI agent Raye Penber, in the time before he died of a heart attack in the subway station, immediately after getting off a train." He fell silent as the video began to play once more, intent on the scenes playing out before him.

"Raye Penber entered the Shinkjuku station at 15:11. AT 15:13, he rode the Yamanote line. Even if he had been following someone, it would be difficult to conclude anything from this blurry video." Matsuda was apparently reading out notes that had been dictated earlier. He looked about ready to collapse, and his hair was a mess. Wren silently glanced behind her to see the Chief falling asleep on his feet. She frowned again, glancing sideways at L. _Maybe L and Watari are used to keeping up this sort of pace, and maybe I can do it now that I've hit the countryside, so long as I don't drain myself completely again, but the others need rest. And good food. And a bath. In whatever order they can get them!_ "And at 16:42, he gets off the train and dies at the Tokyo station platform," Matsuda finished.

If L noticed her look, he didn't give any indication of it.

"It's strange, isn't it?" he began. "Judging by this footage, by the time Raye Penber got on the train until his death, he had been riding the train for an hour and a half. The Yamanote line only takes an hour to run its full circuit. That envelope is especially strange." Wren started and leaned closer to the screen to better see what L was talking about.

"What envelope?" Aizawa asked him.

L rewound the tape and began playing it once more. The investigators were silent as they watched. Wren cupped her chin with her hand and rested her elbow on her knee in thought.

"Yes, Ryuzaki. I see it too. He has it when he gets on the train, but it seems to be absent when he disembarks…" she mutters.

"I see it! I see it too!" Aizawa exclaimed excitedly. "And yes, by the time he gets off the train, it's disappeared. Ryuzaki, it's amazing that you noticed something like that."

_After all, he's only been at this all night, _Wren thought wryly.

"The envelope isn't on the list of belongings that were found on the body," Chief Yagami chimed in from behind them.

"Which means it was left on the train," both L and Wren said at the same time. They looked at one another. L's face was, as usual, completely stoic once more. Wren's lips were compressed in a tight line – while she was still slightly peeved at the detective, she refused to let that come between her and doing her job.

L looked away from her and continued, fast forwarding to the scene of Raye Penber's death. "And in this video of Penber's final moments, it looks to me as if he's desperately trying to look inside the train. Wouldn't it be interesting if Kira was there?"

"That would be impossible!" the Chief replied!

"I don't believe it's likely, either," L said. "Why would Kira, who can control death from a distance, want to come to the scene of a crime? It doesn't make sense."

"But what if there was something in the envelope that Kira would want…?" Wren began. Her head snapped up as a thought occurred to her. "The other FBI investigators died _after_ Penber's death for the most part, correct? Not the head of the team, just the investigators?"

Watari answered her softly, "That is correct, Miss Wren."

"What if the envelope contained… the names of the other investigators? Those _besides_ Raye Penber? What if Kira controlled Penber to get him to release the names of the other FBI agents who were investigating the Kira Case, before killing him off?" Her eyes turned towards L. "Wouldn't the gain of killing off those investigators have been worth the risk of showing up in public?"

L's eyes widened as he thought that over. "Yes, it's possible." His finger move up to his mouth as he turned to stare at the screen once more, "Kira may have decided to try something bold…"

The other investigators were open mouthed in shock.

Wren's eyes darkened. "You know it's kind of sickly ironic."

L looked at her silently, waiting for her to continue.

"If he hadn't killed off those agents, we would have never narrowed down the list of suspects. The agents would have simply moved on to the next person on their lists and nothing would have come of that FBI investigation. It's almost like he wants to be found out on some level. Or like he is just so damn proud that he won't suffer anyone even hinting that what he's doing might be _wrong._ If he had ignored the agents and continued on his everyday life… Nothing would have come of the FBI investigation." She paused for a moment. "That bastard wasted all the lives of those FBI agents. And in doing so, we can in theory narrow down the list of people to look into. I think we should look more closely at the people Raye Penber investigated."

L had been close to drawing that same conclusion himself. He stared at the woman sitting next to him. "And what are your reasons behind this deduction? I would like to hear if they match up with my own."

Wren started, hearing that the detective echoed her own beliefs. "Well… Penber was the first of the FBI investigators in the field to die. If we assume that the envelope he was carrying contained something important to Kira," she gestured towards the screen as she was talking, "then we can assume that Penber had some sort of contact with Kira. Somehow, Kira managed to get his name, and then used that to get him to release the names of other investigators, as well as using that to kill him off in the end so the man couldn't testify against him. Thus, it is my belief that we should focus on those that Penber was investigating during the span of dates that you deduced at our first meeting with you." This time she nodded to L respectfully, all traces of her former agitation with him gone.

L nodded to her and tore his eyes from her, pondering what he'd learned. _**It's a good thing she's coming to stay here, **_**he finally decided. **_**Her mental skills alone are astounding and will be of great use, even without her physical skills.**__**I just wish…**_** he stopped that thought there. He didn't particularly fancy admitting **_**that **_**to himself at the moment.**

** But deep in the back of his mind he wished that she wasn't so much a fighter. He wished there was some way he could trust her, as he had once trusted Naomi Misora – the only woman that he'd ever cared about. Wren could be a very valuable asset, if he could trust her to work with her after all this was done with. **

** But those speculations had no place in this case. He didn't trust her, and Naomi wasn't here. **_**Raye Penber was Naomi's fiancé's name, wasn't it? I should find out what has happened to her.**_

** L made a mental note to get Watari to see to it. **

Just then, Watari's phone rang. "Ryuzaki… Ukita at the police station has received a call that he is concerned about. Apparently Raye Penber's fiancé, Naomi Misora, has gone missing and hasn't been heard from since his death."

L stared at Watari for a moment. He forced himself to hide the jolt of pain that shot through him at that revelation. It was unimportant. "Yes, we worked together on the LA BB Cases…"

"Couldn't anyone be depressed over the death of their fiancé? Could it be… suicide?" Matsuda pointed out. Wren stood up and turned to allow her eyes to follow L in his pacing around the room. _Something's got him agitated…_

"No, the Naomi I knew was very strong willed. An excellent FBI agent. If anything, she would likely be thinking of capturing Kira herself, in revenge. She was with Penber…" he paused in his pacing. "Perhaps she'd found a clue and Kira killed her before she could come to us with it. In which case, investigating Penber's targets would become even more of a priority."

_**Naomi… She quit her job as an FBI agent to go to Penber. What a waste of her talents. **_**Ah well, it wasn't his place to judge what the woman had decided to do with her life. After all, it wasn't as if she'd actually known **_**him**_** very well during the BB Case. He'd gotten to know her, but when he let himself admit it, the attraction he had felt for the intelligent, graceful woman had been entirely one-sided. After all, who would want anything to do with someone like him? She hadn't even known him face-to-face anyway.**

** He glanced over at Wren, comparing the only two women that he'd had the… pleasure… of working with on business matters. The two of them were both brilliant and seemed strong-willed, but there the resemblance ended. Naomi had been short and thin, as well as very delicate in her appearance. He remembered her pale skin, brown eyes, and long black hair. Her capoeira fighting style had impressed him and sparked his interest in learning it. Wren's freckled face looked back at him, one eyebrow arching in question over her emerald green eyes. Her red hair shone with golden highlights from the sunlight emerging through a crack in the curtains. Her shoulders were broad and strong for a woman, and he knew that she was nearly his height when she stood. She had a curvy figure, where Naomi had been sylph-slim. While she also walked with grace, it was a grace that spoke of a stalking predator, unlike Naomi. He had no idea what her fighting style would be like, but he suspected it would be nothing like the dancing grace that Naomi's had been.**

** He sighed and turned away. In the end, Naomi had rejected him anyway. He shouldn't have been surprised but…**

Watari watched L, sensing his foster-son's disquiet. He had known of L's interest in Naomi, but hadn't thought too much of it; he knew that the woman only respected L and knew him as a voice behind a computer screen anyway. Watari's eyes travelled over to Wren at the same time L's had. She looked questioningly at L and then turned to look outside, the golden sunlight highlighting her face and hair. Besides the other children at Whammy's, whom L had kept minimal contact with, this woman was possibly the first that L had had the opportunity to work with face-to-face. She was also one of the first to prove to be L's intellectual equal. The older man wondered if his son would ever come out of the shadows enough to see the light that could be found in another person. He remembered his deep friendship with Wren's mentor and wished that his son could experience the same feeling.

It saddened him sometimes that he was the only person in the world that L trusted completely.

"We will focus the investigation on the two people that Raye Penber was investigating at the times that I specified." L finally said.

"Who were they?" the Chief asked.

L looked back over his shoulder at the Chief. "Deputy Director Kitamura and his family and… Detective Superintendant Chief Yagami and his family."

The shock was written plain on the Chief's face at this revelation. The other investigators seemed floored too. Wren kept herself from showing her astonishment by force of will alone.

"I also wish to place wiretaps and surveillance cameras in both households," L continued, keeping his face still as he announced this.

"That's way out of the question!" Aizawa exclaimed. Wren rolled her eyes. After all, she was giving up a good chunk of her freedom to be investigated again herself. "It would become a civil rights issue if it was ever found out, and we'd all be fired!"

"Weren't you willing to risk more than your jobs? I thought we were putting our lives on the line here?" L shot back at the man. _He's probably tired of hearing backtalk from Aizawa every time something he does offends the man's delicate sensibilities, _Wren thought to herself.

"Ryuzaki, what is the possibility that Kira is among them?" the Chief asked, his face deathly serious.

"Ten… no five percent," the detective replied, looking up at the ceiling as he pondered the question. Wren thought he was deliberately underplaying the chances in order to set the Chief's mind more at ease. _All the data and information we've gathered so far… all the deductions we've come to in the past morning… All of that would have to be completely false if the chance was actually that low. _Her eyes met L's, letting him know that she was calling his bluff personally, but nodding to him to indicate that she wouldn't say anything. L noticed her look and pretended not to notice so as to not draw the attention of the other investigators to her.

"No way! All that for a five percent chance is a bit much," Matsuda chimed in.

"No," the Chief interrupted. A fine sheen of sweat showed on his face as he said it. Wren felt for the poor man. "Of all the people we've investigated so far, there wasn't anyone who was the least bit suspicious. I think we should look into it." Wren's respect for the Chief grew once more as the man faced the fact that his family members could possibly be the killer they were working so hard to stop. "Even if there's only a one percent chance of us finding Kira, we must still look into it," the man finished.

"I never believed that my family was under suspicion. Fine! Please place the cameras!" the Chief had a frantic look in his eyes as he demanded this, to the gasps of the other investigators. "Install them in every part of the house, even the bathrooms! Don't miss a single corner!"

"Thank you very much, Chief Yagami," L said, nodding to the man. "That's what I was planning to do."

"Chief, what are you talking about!" Aizawa yelled. Wren was fast developing a headache due to that man's obstinacy.

"That's right, you have a wife and daughter, don't you!" Matsuda was joining Aizawa. Wren stifled a moan of frustration as she stood by the window, her face in shadow.

"I KNOW THAT," the Chief finally broke, exclaiming at the others. "But there's no point in doing this if we aren't thorough! Just be _quiet!_"

The other investigators stared at their Chief for a moment before apologizing.

L sat himself back down on the couch. " Well, out of courtesy, only the Chief, Wren and I will conduct surveillance on his house – after all, Miss Wren is also a female."

"Watari," he continued, "How long will it take to set up the wiretaps and cameras?"

"Starting tomorrow, I can do it anytime that both of the families are out of the house," he replied.

"Very well."

**000000000000000000**

"Miss Wren," Watari said, interrupting the musings of the investigators and L. "Shall we go to retrieve your things from your hotel room? I have other errands that I need to run as well…"

She nodded at him, while the other investigators looked astonished that she was moving in with the detective. They had heard her adamant argument against it and assumed that when Watari had entered the room with the two younger people that he'd gone to resolve the issue. They'd thought that having a young lady living in the home of a young man wasn't quite… appropriate… anyway.

The two of them headed out of the hotel suite and to the parking garage attached to the hotel.

Wren climbed into the passenger seat of the car as Watari got in the driver's seat. "We need to pick up all the equipment, right?"

"Among other things," the older man replied.

He started the car and left the parking deck, the two of them sitting in silence as he headed down the street towards her hotel.

Finally she broke the silence. "Watari… do you think I'm a traitor of some sort too?"

He glanced over at her before returning his gaze to the road. "No Miss Wren. I don't believe even L truly believes you are a traitor. But you have to remember who he is. What he does. It's his job to be suspicious of everyone and everything. Just like it's your job to do so. However, unlike you, L has very little experience interacting with people on a face-to-face basis. Despite this he's not what you could call 'sheltered' in the least." Wren looked over at the man, puzzlement written across her face.

"Watari, what do you mean?"

"He's never been sheltered from the worst of what humanity has to offer, Miss Wren. His job is to see the darkness that people hide behind masks of kindness. What he lacks is experience with the best of humanity."

Wren's eyes softened in shared understanding. _I know how that feels too. The only reason I don't automatically assume the worst is because I've seen that there is really no black-and-white; I've had enough experience in the real world to learn that. But L… L has lived in a world of cases where his job was to find the darkness in people. He hasn't lived in the outside world to learn that most people are… average. Balanced in their good and their bad. Even knowing that, I still find it difficult to trust people. What must it be like for someone who can only see the shadows? _"Sometimes it's hard to see the light when you live in the shadows, huh?"

Watari looked over and caught the look of complete understanding on the woman's face. He had to look away before his emotions got away from him. The older man's throat closed in pain and sadness – sadness for the light that his son was afraid to know after so many years of the darkness. _Is all this my fault?_ He sometimes wondered. _Did I do this to my beloved son-in-spirit? She understands exactly what I'm saying; I can see that written across her face. Oh Kairne, what have we done to our children? How could we raise them to see the darkness and forget to show them the light? How could we let ourselves be the only brightness in their worlds? How lonely Miss Wren must be without Red…_

Wren felt comfortable letting the old man glimpse her understanding. For some reason she trusted him; it felt to her like she was confiding in her foster-father once more. She gazed out the window, wondering about that. Finally she spoke again.

"Well, Watari, some of us _are_, in fact, out to protect Ryuzaki," her voice was like steel as she said this. "How am I going to do my job if he won't ever trust me?"

Once more, Watari glanced over at the woman, this time hearing echoes of his old friend again in her voice. _"How can I do my job if you won't trust me to watch your back!" he'd said. Oh Red, old friend…_ "Well, Miss Wren, I trust you. And that's a start."

Wren turned wide eyes to the man sitting next to her. She'd never expected to hear that from him. A blush of pleasure graced her cheeks, for she took such an admission from this man as a great compliment.

As they turned into the parking lot of her hotel, she looked at the older man.

"Thank you, Watari… and if you would, just 'Wren' is fine." She said softly.

Watari's eyes sparkled as he looked over to her. "You're welcome… Wren." _Yes, I believe if anyone can bring my son out of the darkness, it will be this bright young lady here. Red… Thank you for this gift. _

_Perhaps our children can still be saved from the shadows._


	9. 8 Expectations

**First of all, I don't own Death Note or its characters.**

**Second of all, I've decided to add Watari as one of the characters of this story because it seems I'd like him to play a bigger part in it. :D**

**Third of all, I hope everyone enjoys, and thanks to everyone that's been reading my work!**

**And of course, as always, I'd love any feedback that anyone cares to give me! Thanks guys!**

**-E**

**000000000000000**

Chapter 8 - Expectations

Wren got out of the car after the short drive and stretched, looking over at Watari as he emerged from the vehicle. She was profoundly relieved to have found out that she had an ally of sorts in Watari. She was also surprised by the regard the older man apparently had for her foster father, and, by extension, for her. She was also very happy to have found herself able to confide in the man. She felt a small flickering happiness within her spirit when she contemplated getting to spend more of her time with this man that her father had called 'friend'.

"So, Watari… How did you meet my foster-father, Red? That is, if you don't mind my asking," she finally asked as the two of them started to head towards the entrance of the hotel.

Watari seemed somewhat surprised by the question and thought about it for a moment before answering her. "Well…" he began as they boarded the elevator, "When I first met Red, I had hired him to act as my bodyguard for a time. I am an inventor, you see, and I was going to make a presentation about a new alternate energy source that I had developed. However, two rival companies both had their eyes on my work and had been trying to buy me off in the weeks leading up to the conventions that I was scheduled to present at. When that didn't work for them, I expected that they might turn to… less civilized means of trying to steal my work." He paused as they walked down the hallway and she unlocked the door to her room.

It was a small room when compared to the lavish suite that L and Watari shared – nothing more than a bedroom and attached bathroom, really. There were a couple of chairs and a coffee table in the corner to serve as a sort of "living area."

"Please, have a seat while I pack. And please continue your story, I'm really eager to hear about this," Wren stated, slightly embarrassed. She could have gotten a bigger room, but she'd figured that sleeping and showering would be all that she'd have used the room for anyway and chosen not to waste her money on something larger, ample though her savings were. There wasn't even a kitchen, just a coffee maker situated next to the TV on the dresser. The only thing that had mattered to Wren was that the place was _clean_, and that it was cleaned daily; with her enhanced sense of smell, dirty sheets and smells left by previous tenants were pure torture to deal with. And seeing the stains left by… bodily fluids of previous overnighters disgusted her. While she could handle blood, she didn't want anything to do with other fluids the human body produced when they were left behind by other people and unscrupulous cleaning staff.

Watari smiled at her and took a seat in one of the chairs in by the window. "So I hired a bodyguard for the duration of the presentations that I was going to be making – about three weeks, it was to be. I'd hired him because he was the best money could buy, and when he accepted the job, I didn't think much of it." He looked momentarily abashed as he continued. "I must admit, at the time I didn't give much thought as to the significance of a mercenary or hired bodyguard that could _choose _which jobs he took like that. It was only later that I found out that Red had reasons he selected only certain jobs – jobs that agreed with his code of honor."

Now he looked positively embarrassed, but he continued anyway. Wren was shocked enough that she stopped her packing to listen. "I also must confess that I didn't expect Red to be anything like he was. I'm afraid I treated him downright… well, not quite rudely, but I was certainly quite arrogant and believed that I held the moral high ground over Red when I first met him. However," Watari grew more serious now, looking Wren in the eyes, "My personal beliefs were altered quite abruptly when Kairne saved my life at the cost of injury to himself." He paused for a moment, looking thoughtful and a little sad as he remembered the past.

"I was young and I didn't know then what I know now. I had actually dismissed Red the night I'd finished the last of my presentations and paid him then and there, not thinking that there would be any trouble now that word was out about my invention – I was to head home the next day, you see. That night I was kidnapped – some men hired by one of the companies broke into my hotel room, drugged me, and hauled me off. I woke up gagged and tied to a chair in a room with no windows and a locked door. They wanted me to hand over the plans and patents of my invention, so they could get rich on them. I'm not sure exactly how long I spent there, at least two or three days I think. All I know is that after a few days, I woke up to find Red unlocking the door to my cell!" Wren smiled, thinking of her ever-competent mentor.

"Apparently, Red had decided to take it upon himself to stay on watch that night. He'd seen my abductors get away and managed to hide a tracer on the vehicle they used, which he followed. When they reached their destination, he alerted the authorities and began scouting out their movements while he waited for a S.W.A.T. team to arrive. He personally planned and headed the operation to retrieve me – during which he got shot twice; once in his upper left arm and once in the abdomen. He was injured by the time they got to me, but had simply tied up his wounds and pressed on, determined to ensure my safety. He got me out of there, even though he'd already been paid and fulfilled the letter of the contract he'd taken with me. By some miracle, the abdominal shot hadn't hit any vital organs and didn't rupture the intestinal wall. I paid for all of his medical expenses myself and stayed by his bedside until he was fully recovered."

Watari smiled then. "During his recovery the two of us became close friends; something that wouldn't have been possible before my change of heart in regards to the mercenary man. He taught me a lot about tactics and about his job, some of which I use today in working with Ryuzaki. I shared many things about my own work with him, and some of his insights actually led me to create some pretty interesting inventions." Watari chuckled.

"Red even taught me how to shoot, once he was fully recovered. After that, we kept in touch for many years – I actually hired him a few more times, but often I would call him to simply ask for advice or even just to chat. Red hid it well from those who refused to look beyond the surface – like I had at first – but he had a brilliant mind."

"So, my dear Wren, does that story satisfy your curiosity?" Watari asked, his eyes crinkling as he smiled at Wren's open-mouthed expression.

Wren quickly closed her mouth and smiled quietly back at him. For a moment, it had been almost like the old times – when her foster father would share stories with her about his jobs. Listening to Watari, she had felt a peace settle over her that she hadn't felt since Red had died. It felt like… like she had truly made a friend in this man, who had been a confidant of her father's.

"Yes, it did indeed," she replied quietly, her voice filled with warmth that she didn't bother to hide from the older man in front of her. She turned back to her packing, not wanting to waste too much more time at the hotel.

Once she was done packing up her clothing, she looked over to Watari once more. "We're about to go out and shop for the things we need for wiring up those houses, right?"

"Yes, that and finding something to bring back for Ryuzaki's dinner," Watari replied.

Wren shuddered, thinking of the amount of sugar that the detective consumed in his coffee. She remembered him eating through a bucket of ice cream when she'd come in that morning. Then a thoughtful expression crossed her face. "The other investigators will likely still be there too, won't they?"

"Yes, I believe so. I was planning on purchasing something for them as well," Watari replied.

Wren smiled suddenly. "_Your _hotel suite has a kitchen if I remember correctly, right?" She remembered catching a glimpse of it from the dining room earlier.

Watari nodded, "Of course."

"Well, why don't we gather ingredients, and I'll make _everyone_ a home-cooked meal? I think it'll do the others good to eat something that's not take out." She pointedly made sure to stress the word 'everyone.'

Watari's eyebrows rose questioningly at that. "Everyone? Even Ryuzaki? You may find it difficult to cater to his… mmm… tastes. Not to mention I didn't think you'd be feeling so charitable after your disagreement this morning."

Wren winced slightly. "Despite that disagreement, I do hold Ryuzaki in high regards. The only reason I disagreed so adamantly is that I'm used to a great deal of freedom and time outdoors – being locked in a room all day would make me go crazy. Your compromise was admirable, but now that I've had time to think about it and cool down a bit, I do see where he was coming from." She left unsaid her idea that perhaps she could make amends by providing something delicious for the detective as well as something to bring some energy back into the other investigators.

"Anyway, the entrée that I have in mind should please even Ryuzaki's palate. I'll count it a supreme compliment if I can get him to eat something that's not quite as heavily sugar-laced as what he's used to. It will probably be good for him to eat something better for him for once anyway! However, just in case I can bake something for dessert… if he doesn't like dinner, he can at least eat that, like normal. Could you tell me his favorite fruit, or would that be giving away too much information about him?" Wren's voice was slightly teasing as she asked this, but there was a serious light in her eyes. _It's time to see if the two of them will trust me with even the little things. If they're willing to go that far, then I can eventually earn their trust with bigger issues. I know Watari said he trusted me but…_

_That won't count for much if L will never trust me._

Watari hesitated for only a moment before replying, "Well… he loves strawberries…"

The smile that Wren turned on him was brilliant.

**000000000000000000000**

Wren showered quickly and changed into some "street clothes" – a pair of dark denim jeans and an emerald green v-neck t-shirt. The shirt hugged her body without being too tight, and the neckline, while low, wasn't wide enough to reveal the mark on her chest. A light windbreaker went over her shoulders, but she left the jacket unzipped. She even dug out some socks and tennis shoes, though she eyed them with distaste despite the chill of winter outside. She brushed her teeth and combed her hair out before exiting the bathroom to throw the last of her things into her bags. For once, she left it down out of its customary braid, framing her face and flowing down her back in a golden-red wave. She kept on the gold-colored band that Watari had given her that held her tracer and dug out an mp3 player and headphones from her bag. Lastly, she slipped a simple knife into a leather sheathe that was attached to her calf before she nodded to Watari.

"Since we're going out under cover, I'm not going to risk bringing either my sword," she gestured to the silk-wrapped bundle that contained her sheathed sword and the belt that it attached to, carefully wound around the sheathe to prevent it from getting tangled in transit, "or my guns."

Watari nodded to her, thinking that such precautions were sensible enough. "Don't women who have belt knives and pepper spray and the like usually carry them in their purses?" he asked, struggling to keep from smiling.

Wren sniffed disdainfully before answering. "I refuse to carry one. The purpose of a purse seems to be simply to consume space and to send objects you need into the land of Narnia while it collects things you _don't _need to add to its weight. Plus, if I actually needed a knife, it'd be much easier to locate and draw it from where it is, rather than from in the bottom of a fancy bag."

Watari chuckled, pleased that he'd been successful in teasing her. After a moment, Wren dropped her dignity and joined in, her chuckle low and melodious. _I've done more smiling and laughing today than I have since Kairne's death,_ she thought. For once, such thoughts weren't accompanied by a twinge of pain in her heart.

Wren bent to pick up her things, and the two of them headed down to the front desk so Wren could check out of the hotel.

**0000000000000000000**

Watari apparently had contacts in the business world even in Japan – it only took them a few quick stops to pick up already-boxed packages of equipment before they were done with that portion of their errands and ready to head to the grocery store before going back to the hotel. Watari followed Wren with a shopping cart as she blew through the supermarket like a whirlwind, knowing exactly what she needed for her project.

At the checkout line, he moved to pay for all the things that Wren had picked, but she stopped him before he could hand his card to the cashier. "Please, let me. I'd like this to be my treat for everyone."

Watari couldn't resist, seeing the happy smile on the young woman's face.

**0000000000000000000**

** None of the investigators thought anything remarkable was going on when they heard a key turning in the lock of the hotel suite. That is, until what was unmistakably a young woman's rang out from beyond the door. L's eyes shot to the entrance to the suite, and he scrambled to his feet, ready to confront whoever was coming into the investigation headquarters. Chief Yagami and Aizawa's hands both went to their guns, though they didn't move from their positions on the sofa. They didn't feel the need to waste what little energy they had left unless it was necessary.**

** Matsuda, predictably, jumped up from his seat as well, tensing.**

** They all stared in shock as the door opened and Watari entered the room, smiling and pulling a luggage cart loaded down with paper grocery bags. There was some luggage – L presumed it was Wren's – underneath the bags. A smiling Wren walked in next, steadying the other end of the luggage cart and helping Watari to maneuver the awkward thing to keep it from bumping into something and spilling its contents on the floor. L took a moment to recognize her - he was wearing jeans and a form-hugging shirt, and her hair was down. Also notable was the lack of any obvious weaponry on her person. She kept her hands on the cart and simply hooked a foot around the door to kick it closed behind them. The two of them waved to everyone in the living room before proceeding with their accoutrements towards the dining room and kitchen of the suite.**

** Each of the investigators met one another's eyes in shock. **_**I've never heard her laugh like that before…**_** L thought to himself, stunned. The others all sagged back down into their chairs, sighs of relief and puzzled glances being exchanged all around. L padded quietly towards the kitchen area, intent on finding answers.**

**000000000000000000**

Wren smiled at Watari as they began unloading the cart, putting bags on all the available counter space. She began to sort out all of the things she would need and put them in some sort of order. A soft knocking at the doorway caused her to look up and pause in her organizing. She locked eyes with the pale detective.

"Out!" she exclaimed, smiling. "Out, out, out!" She literally vaulted one-handed from a standstill over the countertop she was working on, headed towards L. The man backed up, his hands held up at chest height with palms turned outward, as if to ward her off and a worried look in his eyes. She giggled at the look on his face.

_**Did she just… giggle at me?**_** L was becoming less confused and more bemused by the second. He had no idea what was going on, but she was smiling at him at least, so he probably wasn't in danger of a repeat of that morning.**

She gently pushed his shoulder, turning him around and poking him in the back to get him to walk away from the doorway.

He looked over his shoulder at her, not sure he liked the personal contact. Most people didn't come any closer to him than they had to physically. She simply continued grinning at him. Finally, when she had him far enough from the kitchen to satisfy herself she let him spin himself back around and face her. "It's a surprise," she said simply.

"Oh… very well then." L had no idea what to do with her grinning at him like that, her hair falling down around her face instead of up in a businesslike braid.

She turned to head back to the kitchen and then stopped, looking back at him. "Where should I put my things, Ryuzaki?"

He stared at her with his grey eyes for a moment before heading back towards the living room, gesturing silently for her to follow. She fell into step behind him and he struggled to ignore her bright mood. He also secretly hoped that she'd forgotten about her previous anger at him that morning. He walked over towards his room and then gestured to one next to it.

"If you have no objections, this room would be suitable for you to stay in. The room next to it on the far side is Watari's, and this one here is mine," his voice sounded low and bored with the proceedings, but his eyes darted to and fro as he waited for her reply.

She walked in the room and pulled back the drapes, exposing a sliding glass door that led to a small balcony. Wren noticed a door leading to a bathroom with a much larger tub than the one in her previous hotel room and smiled. She took a deep breath, detecting nothing but the faint smell of cleaning chemicals and detergent. She noticed that the balcony seemed to be connecting all the rooms together – each with its own entrance to the same balcony.

She turned and smiled at L, "It's perfect, thank you."

L looked away and began to head back towards the investigation room, but paused when he heard her clear her throat, looking over his shoulder at her once more. "I want to apologize for my anger this morning," she stated simply and quietly. "I understand where you were coming from, I just couldn't stand the thought of being cramped up inside for days on end with no freedom."

L stared at her for a few moments before nodding quietly. As he turned away, he brought his thumb up to his mouth and gently nibbled on the end of it, thinking.

She headed back towards the kitchen, knowing that she, at least, was starving, and betting that the others would be hungry and ready to eat soon too.

**000000000000000000000**

Wren was surprised to find that Watari knew very little about cooking. Still, he helped her gamely after she demonstrated the things she needed done. She was careful to leave the easiest things for him.

"We'll make a chef of you yet!" she joked. She had brought in her mp3 player and a stand that acted as speakers so that she could listen to music while they worked. Frequently, her explanations would be interrupted by her humming or singing her favorite part of a song quietly along with the music. Watari enjoyed listening to her singing along, and smiled when he saw her happy expression as she busied herself in the kitchen. _She obviously loves to make food for people, _he thought, surprised to find out about this particular talent and passion of hers.

Finally, the dishes were done even to Wren's exacting specifications. They loaded everything on to a serving cart and stacked some dishes and chopsticks on it to hand out as well. Watari grabbed silverware sets for himself and L, just in case.

As they walked into the investigation room, everyone's eyes riveted to the laden cart.

"Dinner's served!" Wren exclaimed to the room at large. She placed two bowls of different types of sauces on the table with ladles and little serving cups so everyone could pick the one they wanted – one of the sauces was a clear golden color, and one was red sweet and sour sauce. The bowls of food went next to the sauces – one large bowl piled high with a tempura chicken mixed with stir fried pineapple chunks and the other piled high with stir fried rice. All of the investigators immediately reached for plates and began to dig in.

Wren smiled, well pleased at the reception the food was getting. Watari prepared a plate for L, picking out extra pineapple slices and leaving off the rice. He coated everything with the golden colored sauce and handed it to him. "I believe even you will find this meal to your tastes, Ryuzaki." He told the pale detective, enunciating the words carefully.

_I'll bet that's some sort of code between them that lets him know Watari was there the entire time I was cooking and didn't slip anything into the food. _She served herself, taking helpings of both sauces and making sure that L saw her eating from the same bowls as everyone else.

Watari then leaned closer to L and Wren listened over the sounds of everyone else enjoying their dinner to hear what he was saying to his protégé. "Wren made this especially with your tastes in mine, Ryuzaki. Please, try some." She blushed a little bit, glad that her face was in shadow in the darkened room. At least no one else heard that comment.

She watched from the corner of her eye as L gingerly picked out a pineapple and took a bite from it, obviously trying to see what the sauce was. His eyes widened and she struggled to hide a grin. She'd used honey as a base for the gold colored sauce, knowing that L would want his food to be as sweet as possible. She had put a little bit of a sweet white wine in the sauce as well and some spices to give it a gentle kick and balance the sweetness a tiny bit. But only a tiny bit.

She chuckled quietly to herself and concentrated on her own portion.

A short time later, Matsuda leaned back with a sigh and stared at the empty platters in the center of the table mournfully. "That was _wonderful_, Miss Wren."

The other investigators roused from their food-induced stupors enough to chime in their agreement. The Chief smiled at her and thanked her for such a delicious meal.

Wren glowed under their praise and then smiled. "So… does anyone want dessert?"

She noticed L perk up as soon as she mentioned dessert. He had eaten all of the serving that Watari had handed him, but she suspected he was waiting for later to sneak something sweeter to eat. Well, he wouldn't have to!

She uncovered two platters with a plain cake on them, replacing the empty bowls at the center of the table with the cakes.

**L eyed the cakes, slightly disappointed. They appeared to be simple pound cakes. He'd been hoping for something… sweeter. He carefully hid his disappointment, however, knowing that Watari would not approve if he hurt Miss Wren's feelings. He would eat some of this to hold himself over, though pound cake had never been his favorite – too heavy and dense and not enough flavors.**

** Secretly, he admitted to himself that he had enjoyed the dinner almost as much as the other investigators appeared to have loved it.**

Ryuzaki was the first to cut himself a giant slice of one of the cakes and place it on a plate. He cut off a piece of the cake with his fork and started to lift it to his mouth before he stopped, feeling a touch on his shoulder. Surprised, he looked over to see Wren touching him gently with a single finger.

"Now, Ryuzaki, you can't have a good pound cake like that without toppings can you?" she stated, grinning. She took the plate from his hands and reached over to the cart, pulling out two bowls and setting them on the top of the cart where she could get to them easily. She opened the first bowl and grabbed a spoonful of whatever was inside it, and L sighed mentally. He stopped and his eyes widened in appreciation as he saw just _what _was inside that bowl that she was heaping on his slice of cake.

Sliced strawberries. In strawberry sauce.

_Oh glory._

Wren then reached over to the other bowl and spooned out a dollop of handmade whipped cream to top the strawberries, watching L's reaction out of the corner of her eyes and struggling not to smile. She topped the whole thing with a giant strawberry that she had saved before handing it back to the detective.

**He took a bite of the now – layered cake and closed his eyes in pleasure. Surprisingly, the cake was light and fluffy. It also seemed to have a slight citrusy flavor to it that helped to bring out the flavor of the strawberries. The outer crust of the cake had a caramel flavor to it, and it was almost (but not quite) crunchy in texture. **_**How did she manage to get that sort of flavor in a **_**pound cake?, he wondered. The strawberries were sweet and delicious and the sauce was wonderfully flavored of strawberries and sugar. The whipped cream was fluffy and sweet – he'd had icings that weren't as flavorful as this simple cream. It was wonderful. It was all wonderful.**

Wren was well pleased at the detective's reaction to her cake, and served herself a slightly smaller piece, adding strawberries and whipped cream to her own as well. Each of the others served themselves too, and the room was quickly filled with silence as everyone concentrated on their desserts.

**000000000000000000**

Later that evening, after Wren and Watari cleaned up all the dirty dishes, L cornered Watari to ask him a few questions.

The two of them sat across from each other in a pair of armchairs in L's bedroom, sipping coffee together. L had adopted his customary crouch and Watari smiled quietly over at his son-in-spirit.

"That was quite a production, Watari," L began. "I was under the impression this morning that you would be monitoring the woman more… closely."

Watari simply looked at L for a moment, before deciding not to dignify that with an answer. _We aren't her jailors, my son. And if you'll come out of the shadows for a moment to truly look at her, you'll see that we certainly don't need to even pretend to be. I agree with her assessment earlier – she will be far more effective at her job with our trust that she ever could be without it. How do I make you see that there _are_ some people in the world who are worthy of trust? And that not all of them will come in packages that you would expect. You know how to see past the obvious to see the darkness in people, now how do I teach you to look past the obvious and see the light in someone?_

"You do know that she holds you in the highest regards, L?" he asked instead, answering his question with one of his own. "Despite your earlier disagreement."

L nibbled on the end of his finger, an action Watari knew meant that he was thinking about something. "She apologized to me earlier for her outburst this morning."

"I'd suspected she might," Watari seemed satisfied. He finished off the rest of his coffee before rising and walking over to where L was seated. He patted L on the shoulder affectionately, an action that caused L to look up at him, startled. Neither of them was usually very… demonstrative about their affections for one another. Each of them knew how the other felt, and that was enough for the two of them. Their eyes locked, warm brown to cool silver-grey.

"My son, you should talk to her. Get to know her. I believe that Wren is worthy of our trust, just as much as her foster-father was worthy of mine. You'd be surprised what you can find out about some people if you stop to look past the obvious." Watari was completely serious as he said this, hoping that L would think hard about what he was saying.

They stayed that way silently a few moments, L looking up into Watari's eyes and thinking about what he saw there.

Finally he nodded to the man and turned his gaze to the window, looking out into the darkness.

Watari left the room silently, confident in the knowledge that his son would at least think about his words. He also knew that L would have to come to his own conclusions – he couldn't be rushed. But at least now Watari knew that his son would be looking in to the matter of the brilliant and spirited young woman in the room next to his.

Watari only hoped that his son could learn to trust her, before it was too late for both L and Wren.

_Please Red, if you're watching… Help me to bring our children out of the shadows!_


	10. 9 Dreams

**I don't own Death Note or any of its characters. Damn.**

**I also don't own the song used in this chapter – once more, the song name and original creator/singer will be quoted at the end of the chapter, and I recommend you listen to the song and enjoy!**

**Sorry it's taken me so long to update – I've been making weekly updates and skipped a week due to a crapton of exams that I had to study for last week. I also have some lab reports that I'm putting off that are due tomorrow. Ah well, I'll finish 'em after work tonight! Right? Right!**

**Thanks to my followers and people who read my brainchild! I hope everyone enjoys this next chapter!**

**-E**

Chapter 9 – Dreams

The next morning, Watari and Wren dressed in some fake cable company uniforms and left the hotel suite carrying monogrammed bags of cameras and wiretaps and microphones. Apparently, a van with the name of the supposed cable company that they worked for had materialized overnight. Wren was impressed – two people dressed in grey or black with their faces covered would look suspicious in the light of day going into people's houses. At least this way, they had an excuse if anyone thought to ask what people were doing entering their neighbor's houses while they were away.

They wired up Deputy Director Kitamura's house first, working quickly. It took them very little time to finish up the first house, and they moved to the Chief's house, wanting to get their work over with quickly. Chief Yagami had given them the key to his house, so they didn't even need to use Watari's lock picking skills to get in. The two of them worked their way through this house in somber silence, each locked in their own thoughts. Wren knew that the Chief would be totally devastated if it turned out that a member of his family was Kira.

Finally, there was only one room left to wire up in the whole place; the room of Chief Yagami's son, Light Yagami. Watari and Wren looked at one another as they stood outside the locked door. Wren nodded to Watari, and the older man went to work with his set of lock picks. At last they heard the click as the door unlocked. Wren reached for the door handle first and opened it, noticing a piece of paper that fluttered to the ground as the door opened.

She also thought she might have heard a tiny snap, and examined the door closely for a moment or two before entering the room. _Could there be some sort of trap? In the Chief's house?_ She wondered to herself. But she didn't notice anything that could have made that sort of sound, and put it out of her mind. She picked up the small piece of paper and locked eyes with Watari, one eyebrow raised in a silent question. The older man shrugged, his jaw tight and his eyes darting around the room suspiciously. The same thought was running through both their minds; w_hat could this young boy have in his room that he wanted to hide?_

Together the two of them entered the room in silence. Watari immediately bent to his pack to fish out the last of the equipment. Wren lowered her bag to the ground and scanned the room with her emerald eyes. As her gaze reached the boys desk, she thought she heard a strange sound. She closed her eyes, trying to focus on it. It was like a buzzing in her mind, almost a physical sensation. It puzzled her, as she'd never heard or felt anything like it before.

"Wren!" Watari exclaimed in a rough whisper. The man's exclamation broke her out of her reverie; she opened her eyes and looked at the man, astonished to see that she'd walked across the room and reached out to put her hand on the handle of the top right drawer on the boy's desk. She let her hand fall away and blinked, looking from her hand and back to Watari, wondering what had just happened. There was a worried look in Watari's eyes as he gazed at her, an eyebrow raised in question. Wren shook off whatever feeling it was that had brought her across the room and smiled a quick reassurance to Watari before crossing the room once more to join him.

They had a job to do.

**00000000000000000000000**

Once they were done, they'd left the room, quietly replacing the paper in the boy's door before heading out of the house. Wren heaved a sigh of relief, glad it was over and done with. She jumped into the back of the van and dug her change of clothes out, shedding the ugly "uniform" for some ¾ length loose yoga pants and a tight tank top, which she slipped on underneath the fake uniform top, so that she could shed it once they reached their destination. Watari drove the car into a quiet alley and they traded places – Watari went to the back of the van to change while she finished the drive back to the drop off point for the van. Once they reached the quiet side street they were heading for, the two of them left the keys in the ignition of the van and got out, Wren throwing the uniform top in the back of the van as she walked to the car that was parked and waiting for them.

Watari got in the driver's seat, now dressed in a khaki and _slightly _ more casual looking version of his typical suit – instead of wearing a tie and dress shirt, he wore a simple button down shirt and plain jacket. The two of them breathed final sighs of relief as the parked van faded out of sight in the rearview mirror. Wren dug a pair of jogging shoes out of a backpack that she had kept, smiling out the window.

Watari smiled to see her looking so animated, his earlier worries at her involuntary actions at the Yagami household fading in the light of her excitement. They were headed to the park, and then back to the grocery store they had stopped at yesterday. That morning L had voiced a request that she continue with her culinary experiments. He'd voiced it like he was giving her _permission_, but both Watari and Wren had figured out what his concession had really meant; that the detective had enjoyed the meal and seen the positive effect the good food had had on all the investigators' moral. Part of the young woman's excitement was tied in with the simple pleasure of getting to run, while the other part was a simple pleasure that her efforts the previous evening had been appreciated.

As they pulled into the parking lot next to the park and emerged from the car, Wren looked over at him and smiled. "You look like you could be a normal old man! Like someone's grandfather or uncle, rather than someone's butler or chaperone! It suits you!" she laughed out loud at the distasteful expression on his face at being compared to a butler, pleased that she could tease him.

At her laughter, his eyes started to twinkle too. "Well, young lady, _you_ look like someone who could be expected to go on a mall shopping spree after your little exercise here. After all, you have to keep your figure, right?" He teased, pitching his voice high in an imitation of some of the more airheaded females he'd overheard on some of his excursions.

Wren shuddered theatrically. "Heaven forbid either of us ever turns out normal!"

They laughed together as they walked towards the park, side-by-side, easy in one another's company.

**00000000000000000000000**

**L's distracted gaze followed the two blips on the computer screen that represented his guardian and the mercenary woman. He'd never minded before, that his guardian came and went, performing necessary tasks on the outside world. Of course, Watari had never taken someone else with him on those excursions either.**

** Watari had never stood up to his protégé and argued that L should look more carefully at another person before either. **

** L stopped for a moment, pondering that. His thumb found its way up to his lip as his grey eyes continued to stare at the screen in front of him. **_**Could I be… jealous?**_** He wondered.**

** He'd always known, even at the Whammy House, that he was Watari's favorite. He knew that the older man understood him and cared for him like a father. And now that older man that he so admired was spending time with someone else – someone about the same age as L himself. Someone who gave every indication of being nearly as intelligent. Someone who was willing to venture into that outside world beside Watari… L remembered the obvious camaraderie that the two had shared the day before when they'd returned to the hotel suite.**

** He realized that yes, he was jealous. Of **_**both**_** of them, strangely enough. He shrugged that feeling off, having finally identified, categorized, and analyzed it. **

** He also realized that he could understand Wren's earlier rage at the idea of being cooped up in the hotel room all day. L found that he, too, for the first time, wanted to see something of the light of day. He was becoming tired of forever waiting for his guardian, his father, to come home.**

**0000000000000000000000**

_Her vision was filled with nothing but a giant playing card – an Ace with a horse skull as the picture in the middle. She could hear laughing; an unpleasant laughter that rang with its lack of anything resembling compassion. The skull on the card was laughing, its eye sockets glowing red. Suddenly, the skull sprouted limbs – arms, legs, wings – and a twisted skeletal torso. The creature jumped out of the card and into a world filled with monochrome colors._

_ Piles of trash and bones lined the horizon as far as she could see – everywhere she looked there was nothing but grey clouds, darker grey dirt, and white bones. The monster from the card had spawned others – one that seemed almost like a human dressed in a black, gothic looking costume, until you saw the fangs, claws, and staring red eyes. One whose body seemed to be made of golden human bones, sprinkled with glittering gems, rubies staring out of its skull-socket eyes. One that looked like a snake that had somehow grown limbs, who's slit-pupiled eyes glowed with a sick garnet color. The creatures were numerous and apathetic. They sat around, playing cards or dice and joking around. One or two gnawed on some bones with their sharp teeth. A few others were off to the side, down a staircase, gathered around something, looking at their feet. She drifted closer to this group, overhearing what they were saying._

_ "Ryuuk's become some human's pet, I hear," she heard one mutter to the others, in a voice that rumbled like falling gravel. _

_ "How unfortunate; I'm sure he's not a very _cute_ pet," another joked, his voice taunting and full of scorn._

_ She moved closer still to the group, struggling to look over their shoulders and see what was holding their attention. She saw the world in a puddle there, and everything went black._

_She came to._

_She could hear a sound, like singing. It was like the rhythmic chants of monks that echoed through their stone monasteries. All she could see was light, surrounded by a darkness blacker than anything she'd ever seen. _

_A voice that echoed painfully through her skull emerged from within the others, making her cover her sensitive ears with her hands and fall to her knees with her eyes tearing up. It didn't help, for the voice echoed in her very mind and heart, rebounding off the inside of her skull._

"_She will be the first, or she will be the last. Only by her own will can the decision be made. Only she can determine what happens during the trials to come. She will be tested," the voice said._

_Her head felt like it was splitting apart. She opened her mouth to scream at the pain of that single, bright voice…_

And sat straight up in her bed, drenched in sweat.

Her eyes were wide, her gaze fixed on nothing in the dark room. She struggled out of the sweat-soaked sheets and stood panting in front of a mirror, her dark outline blocking out what little light that seemed in through the curtains. Looking at that shadow in the mirror, she remembered the laughing shadow-creatures and shuddered, turning away.

Wren moved to the window and pulled the curtain back, staring at the well-lit skyline in front of her. As her breathing returned to normal, she clammy, salty feeling of her skin became unbearable. She rushed to her bathroom and quickly took a shower, dressing herself in her more comfortable loose garments that she favored – the long pants that looked like a skirt when she stood still and a loose wide-sleeved shirt.

For what felt like hours – but was probably actually only minutes – she sat on the edge of her bed and stared outside. Finally, she couldn't take it anymore; the memories of that terrible, passionless laughter, of the voice that rang like a thousand bells in her mind. She had no idea what they meant; "the first or the last" of what? Why had the world been reflected in the creatures' pool? What was going on?

She threw open the door of the balcony, walking over to the railing. She felt the wind whipping through her hair and clothes and took comfort in the chill of the real world. Wren gazed into the darkness that lay between the points of light on the horizon, turning her face into the wind, and began to sing softly to herself. Wren felt the wind stealing the sound from her lips and reveled in it.

_Hello darkness my old friend,_

_I've come to talk with you again,_

_Because a vision softly creeping_

_Left its seeds while I was sleeping_

_And the vision that was planted in my brain,_

_Still remains,_

_Within the sound of silence._

**L was awake, of course. He rarely slept for more than a few hours at a time. When he slept, he could hear the bells. The sound of death. He would see his mother and father – nebulous shadows in his memory – and see them, hear them, fighting. He would hear his mother's scream as his father stabbed her with a kitchen knife, before turning the knife on himself. L would see them fall, and hear himself calling out to both of them, begging them to get up.**

** No, it was better not to sleep until he was so exhausted that he wouldn't dream. Better to wake up at the first hint of a bell's toll in his mind, than to see and live through that particular ordeal night after night. **

** So, having already collapsed and woken up again - chased from his rest by the sound of tolling bells - he was awake and working when he heard something that sounded suspiciously like a nearby balcony door being **_**thrown**_** open. He lifted his gaze from the files he was looking at and crept slowly to his own balcony door, peeling back the curtains to gaze outside curiously. **

**The moonlight outlined her. Golden glints danced off her hair as it whipped in the wind outside, the only color he could see in the darkness outside. The city lights also glinted gold from below, lighting up her face. Her eyes were closed and his lips were moving, her faced turned towards the wind. **

** Having ascertained that there probably wasn't any danger outside, he was intrigued – what was that woman **_**doing**_** out there at this time of night? He quietly eased his own balcony door open a crack, careful not to disturb Wren's reverie. Now he could hear it – a soft, low sound over the wind – a song that Wren seemed to be singing. She had a surprisingly beautiful voice, low and clear with a rich vibrato that enhanced her voice without becoming overwhelming or annoying. Her enunciation was careful and precise – like someone who had some musical training.**

_**In restless dreams I walked alone**_

_**Narrow streets of cobble stone**_

'_**Neath the halo of a street lamp,**_

_**I turned my collar to the cold and damp,**_

_**When my eyes were stabbed by the flash of a neon light**_

_**That split the night,**_

_**And touched the sound of silence.**_

** It was a song sung in English, and he understood the words easily. The tune was haunting and one that he recognized from some old vinyl records that he had heard in the Whammy House growing up. **

_**And in the naked light I saw**_

_**Ten thousand people maybe more,**_

_**People talking without speaking,**_

_**People hearing without listening**_

_**People writing songs, that voices never shared**_

_**No one dared**_

_**Disturb the sound of silence.**_

** She sang it beautifully, and the worlds seemed to ring with meaning. The tensed outline of Wren's shoulders relaxed more and more as he watched her sing the haunting melody.**

_**Fools, said I, you do not know,**_

_**Silence like a cancer grows;**_

_**Hear my words that I might teach you,**_

_**Take my arms that I might reach you,**_

_**But my words like silent raindrops fell**_

_**And echoed in the realms of silence.**_

Her voice faded away gently as it caressed the final note of the song. The two of them stood frozen there – Wren watching the city below her, seeing the darkness around her, finally relaxed after her disturbing dreams, and L, the man who didn't want to dream, watching Wren and listening silently in the doorway.

The detective decided finally to show himself. He quietly pushed the door further open and cleared his throat.

Wren jumped, startled, and looked towards the source of the sound.

He put his hands in his pockets and padded towards her, his back adopting its familiar slouch as he moved towards the railing, and his bare feet moving almost silently across the cold concrete floor. His grey eyes stared into the darkness as he refused to look at her. "You have a very… skilled singing voice, Miss Wren," he finally said, keeping his voice carefully monotone, as always.

She stared at him for a moment before finding her voice to reply. "Thank you," Wren said quietly, blinking and looking away from him. "I'm sorry if I woke you." _He needs all the sleep he can get, judging by the bags under his eyes, _she thought, somewhat surprised for her concern for the detective.

"Not at all, Miss Wren; I was not sleeping – I was going over some of the case files. What brings you out here at this time of night?"

She gazed at him from the corner of her eyes, wondering how much she could tell the stoic man without sounding like a frightened child.

"Strange dreams. Disturbing ones." Wren sighed, "I don't think I'll be going back to sleep anytime soon. I have no desire to experience those dreams twice in one night."

L certainly knew that feeling. He cleared his throat, wondering why his mouth felt so dry and his face felt warm all of a sudden. He was glad for the darkness, and kept his gaze locked on the moon.

"Well, I must get back to my work," he said, still keeping his voice neutral. "If you also cannot sleep, perhaps you would care to assist me in sorting through the files I'm working on?" _After all, another mind and pair of hands would probably allow me to finish this before we start our surveillance in the morning, _he reasoned.

Wren was surprised – she believed that the detective didn't agree with her choice of profession or understand her reasons in becoming what she was; she thought that L still maintained the mindset that Watari had maintained prior to the time when Red had saved his life.

She cleared her own throat, and replied to him, also keeping her voice carefully neutral. "Ryuzaki, if you will tell me what to do, I would be glad to assist you in your work," she stated simply, not one to look a gift horse in the mouth. If the detective was finally coming to trust her even a tiny bit, she would take what she could get. She knew that a time would come where his survival, and possibly her own, would depend on the man in front of her and his ability to place some kind of trust in a woman he saw as a fighter, a killer.

He nodded to her and turned back to his room. She followed him inside.

"These are the things that I'm looking for…" he began.

Apparently, the two of them had reached a truce.

**000000000000000000000**

Watari emerged from his room around seven o' clock that morning. By that time, Wren and L had already finished their work on the files and moved to the living and dining rooms, organizing the area and setting up television monitors for the different houses. The monitors for the Deputy Director's house were located in the dining room, while the ones for Chief Yagami's house were in the living room. Wren had set out to make the area a little more comfortable for herself, L, and the Chief, hauling in arm chairs (rather than the straight-backed chairs) and a coffee table that she placed in front of the chairs. If she was going to spend an inordinate amount of time sitting on her ass, she would damned well be comfortable while doing it.

If the man was surprised to find the two younger people working together in such a fashion, he wisely said nothing, and went to help them in their preparations. The other investigators arrived around eight and settled down for a long day of observations. Wren took a seat next to L, with the Chief on the far side of them. Chief Yagami had declined to use the more comfortable arm chairs and insisted on one of the wooden chairs from the dining room.

Wren sighed to herself as she settled into her chair cross legged, glancing over at the pale detective crouching in the chair next to hers.

It was going to be a long day.

**000000000000000000**

It was late in the afternoon by the time anything happened at the Yagami household – apparently the family had spent most of the day outside of the house. Light looked at dirty magazines up until it was time for dinner. The family watched TV during the dinner. L also had planned to try out his suggestion from their first meeting – to announce the presence of numerous investigators headed to Japan from many different countries. The detective wanted to see if any of the family members of either family were rattled by the declaration or reacted to it in any way.

The only one who reacted to the broadcast banner was Light Yagami.

The boy had decided to announce how foolish it was to broadcast the banner, and how it must be a hoax, to try and shake Kira up.

Wren pondered the boy's reaction as she continued to watch the screen. She listened absentmindedly as they watched the boy go up to his room after dinner to study, bringing a bag of chips with him. Light didn't touch or turn on the TV or computer during his after dinner study session – the Chief mentioned that his son was studying for the To-Oh University entrance exam, five days away.

She filed that away for later, making a mental note of the university. She kept her mouth shut and her suspicions to herself while the Chief was present.

Watari came into the room to announce that a purse snatcher and an embezzler had died of heart attacks, whose names had been broadcast on the 9 o'clock news; at a time when Light Yagami was studying.

The Chief seized on that fact, certain that it meant that his family was in the clear. As L voiced his doubts, Wren held her tongue and waited for later.

**000000000000000000**

"So, Miss Wren," L said, turning to her after seeing the other investigators out for the evening, "What is your take on what we've seen today?"

She looked up at him, standing beside her as she watched the investigators leaving the building from the balcony. "I think…," she hesitated. "I think that Light Yagami bears closer watching."

L simply gazed at her with his grey eyes, waiting for her to continue. He knew that she knew that he wouldn't accept an answer like that without hearing the facts behind it.

Finally she broke the silence, speaking quietly, for his ears only.

"Don't you think it's suspicious that he was the only one to call your bluff about the '1500 investigators headed to Japan'? Yeah, maybe he's just quick on the uptake… or maybe he's got a personal interest in finding out whether that threat was a bluff or not. I think that it was strange that Light was looking at those magazines before dinner. I was with Watari when we placed the cameras in that boy's room – I remember that piece of paper that he'd hidden in between the door and the frame. He had something to hide. Somehow, I believe he figured out that people had been in the room and surmised that he was being watched. Those magazines were too convenient – an easy explanation for the 'precautions' he was taking against having people monitoring him or entering his room. Also," she coughed, slightly embarrassed, "I've never known people who buy those magazines to do nothing but sit and look at them with board looks on their faces."

She cleared her throat and began again, "I also think that it's strange that the two criminals killed by Kira this evening were such… minor ones. Kira goes after murderers and rapists and perpetrators of violent crimes, not… purse snatchers. They also died right after their names and faces were broadcast, when we know that Kira can control the time of death. That to me says that the two criminals he killed were killed only to make a point – to show that they died while 'Kira' was doing something else. Light Yagami went straight up to his room to 'study' after dinner. He made a point of not turning on the TV, radio, or computer. He wants to appear completely and totally innocent. That seems suspicious to me. And I think you're bullshitting when you tell Chief Yagami that it's only a five percent chance that his son is Kira."

L was staring at her. She held his gaze with her emerald eyes, refusing to back down.

The detective sighed and looked away from her. "Many of the points you just made echo my own thoughts on the matter," he finally admitted. "And I agree; we need to examine Light Yagami more closely. I'm approximately 85 percent certain that Light is unlikely to reveal himself on camera in the household." The pale man leaned with his elbows on the railing of the balcony and brought a finger up to his mouth to gnaw on as he thought.

"I need to examine him in person, myself, and try to find the chink in his armor, the crack in his acting," he admitted finally.

Instead of protesting immediately as he thought she might, she simply said "I assume you have some sort of plan? And you do, of course, realize that I will be in on it to guard your back. If you want to keep me out of it, you'd have to tie me up here and leave Watari to guard me. After all, the whole reason I'm here is to protect you."

_Protect… me? Why would she care to?_ He was stunned into silence, and took a moment to answer.

"Tell me, Miss Wren, how are you at test taking?"

She grinned at him. "It's just Wren, Ryuzaki. And I think I'm following the gist of your plan already. Shall we head inside to finalize things with Watari?" She gestured grandly for him to precede her back inside.

He simply shook his head, amazed by her careful deductions as well as the way her mind jumped quickly to necessary conclusions.

Secretly, he was also pleased that she could keep up with him so well.

**00000000000000000000**

**Song: "The Sounds of Silence" by Simon and Garfunkel**


	11. 10 Confrontation

**Sorry it's been so long guys! School and work are taking up a chunk of my free time, and unfortunately I don't believe that humans have invented the machine that can write down all the ideas you get in the 30 minutes before you go to sleep, when you're too tired to bother getting out of bed to write them down. I mean, you tell yourself to remember… but it never works. **

**Next week is spring break, so I'll probably be able to get more chapters done.**

**Anyway! HERE IT IS. Enjoy everyone!**

**I don't own DeathNote or its characters.**

**And I love reviews, thank you to everyone for reading.**

**-E**

Chapter 10 – Confrontation

"Ryuzaki, while I understand and agree with your need to examine Light Yagami closer, there are a couple things I would like you to think about." Watari stated calmly after L had finished disclosing his plan to the older man. Wren stood calmly by the window, gazing out at the blue sky and not betraying how intently she was listening to the discussion the two were having nearby.

"The first thing is this," he continued. "I will not be able to fit in or integrate myself into a university campus very well. I could possibly pass off as a professor or guest lecturer, with my age and background as in inventor, but that would give me extra responsibilities that could interfere with the case, which is not acceptable. Nor would we be able to avoid questions and suspicions in such a case if you and I were to spend an inordinate amount of time together in the public setting of the university campus. No, the only members of the task force who will fit in on a campus are yourself, possibly Matsuda, and Wren. Therefore, I cannot be there to guard your back, Ryuzaki." The older man leaned forward earnestly, "Since Matsuda doesn't possess the necessary skills; Wren is, without question, the best possible person to take over that roll for me during this… experiment. She is also just as, if not more, experienced as I am in that line of work."

"I was aware of this, Watari. I was planning on bringing Wren on this assignment with me from the start." L said, looking at the older man with questioning eyes.

"Yes. But Ryuzaki, that also means that you _must_ learn to trust her to guard your back!" Watari was adamant, his voice tight with tension as he spoke to his protégé with a tone of voice he hadn't used since L had grown mature enough to take the lead in working cases. _There's no point in her going with you if you will not trust her, my son. Kairne, my friend, our children must learn to look out for one another, or the danger they are putting themselves in will be even greater,_ he thought to himself. "And Wren…"

Startled at being suddenly included in the discussion, Wren looked behind her at the older man. Personally, she agreed wholeheartedly with Watari's sentiments concerning L's trusting her; a bodyguard was simply not as effective if the person they were working with didn't trust them.

"Wren…" Watari continued, having secured her undivided attention, "This also means that _you_ must trust Ryuzaki to watch your back as well." She looked skeptical, not liking the idea of trusting her safety to anyone else. She'd gotten where she was by not trusting anyone but herself. Perhaps she wasn't afraid of death, but that didn't mean she was going to seek it out; she wanted to fulfill Red's expectations of her to do something with her life first. She looked over at L. Could she trust him to look out for her? She wasn't even sure that he particularly cared whether or not she continued helping with the case.

"The two of you must learn to trust each other and work as a team; if and when you do…" Watari paused, looking away for a moment before continuing in a soft voice. "If you do manage to start working as a team, you will be amazing. Possibly one of the best teams there has been. You each have strengths that align well enough to enhance them in one another… And you each know when to get out of one another's way. You could learn to trust each other, and amplify each other's abilities. It would be quite an achievement, if you two were to manage it." Of course, the old man spoke knowing that both of them would not easily trust anyone. He looked at both of them, holding the skeptical gaze of first one, and then the other for a few moments.

"Be careful, both of you. And please, consider what I have said…"

Wren and L looked at one another, each seeing the speculation in the other's eyes. Neither of them was sure of what to do about it. _Well, that's something that's hardly going to change right away anyway,_ she finally thought. Wren nodded to L and the two of them got up to leave Watari's room and begin to put L's plan into motion. Wren headed out the door and down the hall first.

L paused in the doorway, his back to Watari, and his grey eyes resting on the retreating back of the woman preceding him.

"Watari…" L cleared his throat before he continued. "Thank you for your concern."

"Always, my son," the old man replied quietly. L nodded and continued from the room.

**00000000000000000000000000**

Wren spent the rest of the week going over test questions and reviewing material that she hadn't glanced at in years, only taking breaks to occasionally cook or sleep, or to head out to the park or the store with Watari.

L continued going over case files for the most part, though he did help quiz her on a few subjects when she reluctantly set aside her pride to ask for his assistance. Unused trivia knowledge that she had forgotten over the years came flooding back to her overworked brain over the course of the week, but by the day of the To-Oh University entrance exams, she felt suitably prepared.

She and L arrived twenty minutes early, taking their seats side-by-side in the test room. L actually sat in his chair like a normal person for once, not wanting to draw attention to himself just yet. He was, of course, wearing his customary jeans and white, long-sleeved t-shirt. Wren sported a form-fitting black t-shirt with the Kanji for 'warrior' written across it in gold. She had thought it hilarious when she'd seen it in the store during her outing with Watari the previous day, and bought it right away. Her jeans were cut to allow her to wear boots, flaring out slightly at the bottom while hugging her hips at the top. She'd hidden a knife in a sheathe attached to her calf, as was usual for her. Her red hair was hidden underneath a plain black toboggan hat, in an effort to avoid standing out as a foreigner for now.

L himself had no idea how she'd managed to fit all her hair under the thing.

Calmly, the two of them watched each person enter and go to find their seats, matching bored looked adorning their faces.

Wren's eyes were starting to glaze over with boredom when a shiver travelled up her spine. She stiffened, coming fully awake and straining her senses to find out what had caused her nerves to jangle so alarmingly. As her eyes travelled towards the door, she froze, seeing Light Yagami himself entering the room.

The young man was 18, with reddish-brown hair and brown eyes. He was tall and handsome. But something about him set her on edge. He met her eyes briefly as his brown gaze travelled around the room, and something shrilled an alarm in the back of her mind. Here was someone she should never trust. He had a similar expression to L's the first time she'd met him; calculating and a little bored. He had an almost perfect poker face.

But Light Yagami's eyes gave him away. While L's steel grey eyes gave very little away, this boy's warm brown eyes were cold. She had seen the same look in the eyes of many mercenaries; the look of someone who sees people and weighs out what their lives are worth. Others weren't people to this young man, they were _objects_. Her gaze hardened as she looked at Light, even as her hands tightened their grip on the edge of the table, her knuckles going white. While L was able to hide emotions behind his inscrutable gaze, this boy didn't feel the emotions to begin with; when you see people as objects, they aren't worthy of evoking real emotion within the viewer.

As Light walked down the stairs passing their row on the way to his seat, a chill breath of air touched Wren's face, carrying the scent of apples with it.

**00000000000000000000000**

** L felt Wren stiffen in her seat next to him and guessed the cause easily. What interested him was that her reaction preceded Light Yagami's entrance into the room. L watched Wren from the corner of his eye as her gaze was drawn to the handsome young man, and was interested to see her face grow blank for a moment. Only her eyes gave her away at first, her gaze going steely and determined. L was astonished to find that her determination impressed him. She wasn't afraid of this boy, who may or may–not possess the power and the desire to kill them both.**

** He turned to look at her curiously, noticing something. Flecks of gold were swimming in her emerald eyes; he'd never see anything like it before. However, as he examined the look on her face and her posture, he could clearly tell that she felt that Light Yagami was dangerous.**

** Perversely, for some reason this made him feel safer. Someone else also felt that this boy could be Kira. **_**Perhaps it's the fact that she seems undaunted that's heartening,**_** he thought to himself. **

** L noticed Wren's knuckles going white from her grip on the table and was struck with the strange desire to cover one of her hands with his own. **

** Instead, he brought his left thumb to his mouth and touched his lip, wondering where that urge had come from. He tapped her arm with a finger of his right hand to get her attention.**

**000000000000000000000**

A touch on her arm brought her out of her state of hyperawareness. She blinked and turned her head to look at L, surprised that he had touched her on his own. He was already looking at her, and his grey eyes met her own calmly. She took a deep breath and forced her nerves to settle as his calm eyes held hers. She closed her eyes for a moment before opening them once more and giving him a tight smile of thanks once she had herself under control, before turning her focus to the test that the proctor had set in front of her.

"And… Begin!" the proctor announced from the front of the room.

Immediately, Ryuzaki slipped off his sneakers and leaned back in his chair, adopting something similar to his typical crouch as he delicately opened the test booklet and picked up his pencil using just the tips of his fingers. She settled down as she opened the test book, knowing this was part of L's plan; this was part of his strategy. And in this particular field, he was the general.

She could hear the footsteps of the proctor as he headed closer to their table. "You there..." she resisted the urge to chuckle at the man's affronted tone, "Student number 162! Sit properly in your chair!"

L ignored him, turning his disconcerting gaze to Light Yagami, right as the boy turned around to glare at whoever was causing the commotion. Steel grey eyes met brown, and Wren could almost feel L's determination to catch Kira radiating off him beside her.

As Light turned back around, L and Wren glanced at one another before they bent to begin their tests.

As a cool breeze touched her face, she thought she heard a dark, grating chuckle coming from someone in the room.

**0000000000000000000000**

The entrance ceremony was held several days later, at the start of the semester. L had made a perfect score on the exam, as had Light Yagami. Wren had scored in the top 3%, so she was fairly pleased with her assessment after only one week of review on subjects long left in the shadowy recesses of her mind.

_Some of that crap was so impractical, _she thought to herself as the university speaker rattled on on the stage. For the ceremony, she was seated behind Light and L, who (being the freshmen representatives) were seated side-by-side in front of her in the very first row. Unfortunately, this arrangement meant she wouldn't be able to see the kid's reactions when L proceeded with his plan. But L had told her to go ahead and make whatever observations she could based on what she could see of his body language.

The smell of apples behind the boy was overpowering to her sensitive nose. _What, does he exude apple juice from his pores or something? Jeeze. _She was getting a headache. She was also, strangely enough, getting cold. Wren was mildly peeved she had chosen to wear this dress today, but the plan was to make sure that she would stand out when Light finally noticed her for the first time after the ceremony.

"Now for the freshmen address, freshmen representative Light Yagami, and freshmen representative Hideki Ryuga," the man on the stage intoned.

Wren winced at the ridiculous alias L used, but she saw the sense in it. Having an obvious alias would make his declaration to Light seem that much more believable. She watched as the straight-backed, handsome young man in a suite and slightly bent over, disheveled man wearing jeans and a t-shirt paraded to the stage, and knew which one of the two she preferred. She could hear others in the audience murmuring their own conclusions and observations about the differences between the two men. It seems most of the audience believed L to be "Just freakin' weird."

She watched as Light checked out L from the corner of his eye, his gaze somewhat disdainful. For some reason, she wanted to punch that look right off the handsome boy's face.

She listened to Light and L making their speeches with half an ear as she went back over what L had told her that morning.

_ "We want him to notice you, and to notice we are working together. I want him to wonder what your purpose is. He may even totally disregard you as any kind of a threat for the time being – if he doesn't know anything about you or your profession, which I doubt, he'll probably lump you together with other women he's known." L had said._

_ "I've got no problem with that. It's easier to strike at someone who doesn't expect you to know how to strike. If we ever need to introduce the idea of me being a threat to him, well then… we can do that easily enough. For now, let him wonder. Let him thing that the great L has a chink in his armor in the form of a stupid, weak-willed woman that he pitied and allowed to be his assistant." Her voice was smug. "When he finds out otherwise, it won't be either of us that suffers for his realization."_

_ "You're certainly anything but stupid or weak-willed. Quite the opposite, really," L had replied, his attention on the cinnamon buns she'd set in front of him for his breakfast that morning. Wren had felt her face growing warm and looked away, glad that the observant detective's attention was elsewhere._

_ "Plus, if he tried to come at you by going through me as your supposed 'weakness', perhaps he'll let something slip. No one alive knows my name but me, so I should be safe enough from Kira's power, if he is Kira. And I hardly think a trained mercenary is going to let some untrained and untried teenager get the best of her in a fight," she'd continued, keeping her mind on the case instead of wondering why L's pseudo-compliment should cause her to blush at all._

_ "Hmmm… yes… Just, please be careful, Wren," he'd looked at her once more, his face stoic, and his grey eyes boring into hers. She simply nodded and left the room to get ready for the ceremony, hoping the dim light had hidden her blush.  
><em>

Wren shook off the memory, noticing that L and the young man were done with their speech and returning to their seats. She could see L's mouth moving as he whispered to Light, and knew the gist of the speech he was giving the boy. This was L proving that he knew just about everything about him. Wren could see the puzzled look on the boys face as he finally reached his seat, and had to refrain from snickering at his confused expression.

Once the two were in their seats, she could hear their conversation easily.

"You're planning to join the police when you graduate. And you've already got experience, seeing as you've helped the police solve a number of cases. Now you're interested in the Kira case." L's quiet voice was easy for her to pick out, seeing as it was so familiar to her by now. "I'm impressed by your abilities and your sense of justice. If you promise not to tell anyone, I have important information concerning the Kira investigation that I'd like to share with you."

"I won't tell anyone," Light replied, his voice bearing a hint of scorn as well as curiosity. "What is it?"

_And the fish takes the bait…_

L turned to look at the boy full on, his steel grey eyes examining the boy. "I am L."

Wren could see the boy's shoulders stiffen, either in shock or disbelief. _Or possibly both, _she thought, filing the reaction away in her memory. The boy started to tremble for a moment before he gained control of himself again. _Hmmm… interesting… not quite the reaction one would expect from someone who's innocent and excited to help out on a police case, now is it?_

The boy's head turned slightly to face L. "If you are who you say you are, then you have nothing but my respect and admiration!" Wren thought the cheer in his voice sounded a little phony, but forcing herself to think about it objectively and ignore her feeling about the boy, she couldn't for sure say that his sentiment was false.

"Thank you," L replied. _He sounds amused. I wonder what he's seen in Light's face?_ "The reason I've chosen to reveal my identity to you is because I think you could be of some help to us on the Kira investigation."

After a few moments, she could see Light turn his head away and hear the young man's sigh. His shoulders relaxed slightly as he turned his attention away for the moment. Wren could see the speculative look on L's face, as he brought his thumb to his lips in what she liked to think of as his 'thinking pose'.

The two in front of her were silent for the rest of the ceremony.

**000000000000000000**

After the ceremony was over, she went by the ladies room to let her hair down, surveying herself in the mirror. Despite her distaste, she had forced herself to adorn herself with makeup, using the cosmetics to enhance her foreign appearance. Her emerald eyes stood out large in her pale face dotted with freckles and her hair flowed down her back. The green dress she was wearing certainly looked fancy enough, and would make her stand out even more when she drew attention to herself in a moment.

Deciding that L had had enough alone time with Light, she set off to find the two of them.

**000000000000000000**

She caught sight of them at the edge of the crowd. She cleared her throat for a moment before calling out in her best 'girly voice.' To herself, she apologized at the lack of dignity as she began jogging towards L and Light like any girl who had never run a day in her life – keeping her legs close together and swinging her arms to either side as she put a bright smile on her face… "Hidekiiii-kuuuuun!" she called out, waving as she saw him turn his head with a shocked look on his face.

Damn if she wasn't going to embarrass the hell out of L for putting her up to this sort of thing.

**00000000000000000**

** She was putting more into the act than he'd originally asked her to do. His eyes widened as he saw her outfit for the first time in the daylight. Her long red hair was streaming out behind her, gold highlights dancing over the strands as she jogged towards him. Her emerald eyes and freckles stood out in her pale face. She held the trailing edge of her dress to the side as she ran, to keep herself from tripping on it. Her other hand held her sandals. The emerald of the ankle-length dress only accentuated her hair color and the pale shade of her skin. While her form wasn't as skinny and lissome as most of the Japanese girls around her, the material of the outfit hugged and enhanced the curves of her body and drew attention away from the strength of her frame somehow. She stood head and shoulders above most of the women around her, and her hips and chest were obviously more… pronounced. He wasn't sure he approved at the false… daintyness and girlyness that she was projecting as she ran towards him. He much preferred her usual purposeful grace.**

** L could see the eyes of many young men following her as she jogged towards him.**

** She stopped when she reached them, panting heavily and bending over for a moment before looking up and smiling brightly at him. "There you are Hideki-kun, I've been looking all over for you!"**

_**She's never called me 'kun' before…**_

** "Come on, if you don't hurry we're going to be late!" She announced brightly, taking his arm and pulling him along, to his obvious embarrassment. She ignored Light, certain that by pretending he wasn't present she would make an impression on him.**

** "Wait miss… are you a friend of Ryuga's?" Light burst out before she had gotten L away.**

** Wren turned around and forced a smile on her face. "Oh yes, of course. He's an old friend of mine!" **

_**A… friend? Am I really? **_**L wondered. He was somewhat amused at the woman's performance. She was certainly making an impression on Light.**

** "I'm Kasai! It's nice to meet you! But we must really be going now, sorry!" She waved to Light as she turned around, pushing L along by his back. **

** "Well, I'm sure I'll see you on campus." L called over his shoulder, right as a black car drove up. Seeing Watari in the driver's seat, he opened the car door before gesturing for Wren to precede him into the vehicle.**

** As the door closed, the two of them looked at one another before gazing back at the receding form of Light Yagami. **

** "Well… I certainly think we made quite the impression." L finally said.**

** Wren simply chuckled quietly, enjoying her chance to throw the detective for a loop.**

**0000000000000000000**

Ryuuk watched as the young woman pulled the one who called himself L into the car after her. Once she'd separated herself from the other humans surrounding her he's noticed something he hadn't seen before; the name floating above her head.

A celtic knot with a styelized bird in the center floated golden above the woman's red hair.

_ Hmmm… And I thought their kind had died out centuries ago. Obviously she can't see me… so she's not awakened yet. _His thoughtful gaze travelled to his companion, Light. _I don't think I'll inform him of what I noticed,_ he decided. _It will be much more interesting this way!_

As the car drove off, his grating chuckle echoed back from a place that only Light Yagami could hear it from.


End file.
